How Nvidia’s Founder Started the Company With $200 and a Vision
Nvidia is one of the world’s leading technology companies, known for its graphics processing units (GPUs), artificial intelligence, and gaming products.
But how did it all begin?
In this article, we will explore the story of Nvidia’s founder, Jensen Huang, and how he started the company with $200 and a vision.
It is based on one of his talks you can watch here. [1]
Let’s dive in.
The early years
Jensen Huang was born in Taiwan in 1963. His family emigrated to the United States when he was 9 years old, first living in Oneida, Kentucky, and then settling in Oregon.
Huang received his undergraduate degree in electrical engineering from Oregon State University in 1984 and his master’s degree in electrical engineering from Stanford University in 1992 [2].
After college, he worked as a director at LSI Logic and a microprocessor designer at Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) [3].
The founding of Nvidia
At 30 years old in 1993, Huang co-founded Nvidia with two other engineers, Curtis Priem and Chris Malachowsky [4]. They wanted to create a company that would focus on graphics chips for personal computers, which they believed was a huge market opportunity.
Huang said that he never finished his business plan and that he learned how to start a company by reading books and meeting lawyers. He also said that he bought a Mac so he could use software called Persuasion to create a company presentation for venture capitalists.
The process of getting funded was not easy. Huang has said that they met every day for six months in one of the founders’ townhouse in Fremont, California, and that they had nothing to do except talk and go to lunch.
They incorporated the company with $200 each, which gave them 20% of Nvidia’s stock. He also gave $200 to a lawyer who helped them price the shares and incorporate the company.
Huang said that they got introduced to two venture capitalists who invested in them based on their reputation, their vision, and their clever ideas.
Their reputation was built on their previous work with successful companies like Sun Microsystems, Synopsis, and LSI Logic.
He said that their vision was to create a large market for graphics chips, which they estimated to be worth $200 billion.
Their clever idea was to create a GPU that would accelerate 3D graphics on personal computers.
Nvidia went public in 1999, and Huang has served as its CEO and president since its inception. He owns 3.6% of Nvidia’s stock, which is worth billions of dollars today. [5]
The achievements of Nvidia
Nvidia has become one of the most successful and innovative technology companies in the world. It has developed GPUs for various applications, such as gaming, professional graphics, data centers, automotive, mobile devices, and artificial intelligence.
Some of its notable products include:
- The GeForce series of GPUs for gaming and consumer graphics [6]
- The Quadro series of GPUs for professional graphics and workstations [7]
- The Tesla series of GPUs for high-performance computing and data centers [8]
- The Tegra series of system-on-chips for mobile devices and automotive [9]
- The Jetson series of embedded systems for robotics and edge computing [10]
- The DGX series of supercomputers for deep learning and artificial intelligence [11]
- The RTX series of GPUs with ray-tracing capability for realistic graphics [12]
Nvidia has also been involved in various research and development projects related to artificial intelligence, such as computer vision, natural language processing, self-driving cars, healthcare, education, and entertainment.
Nvidia has won numerous awards and recognition for its achievements, such as:
- The Dr. Morris Chang Exemplary Leadership Award from the Fabless Semiconductor Association in 2003
- The Entrepreneur of the Year in High Technology by Ernst & Young in 1999
- The Pioneer Business Leader Award by the Silicon Valley Education Foundation in 2007
- The Top Company of the Year by Fortune Magazine in 2017
- The Company of the Year by Forbes Magazine in 2017
- The Best Place to Work by Glassdoor in 2018
- The Most Innovative Company in Artificial Intelligence by Fast Company in 2018
The philanthropy of Jensen Huang
Jensen Huang is not only a successful businessman, but also a generous philanthropist. He has donated millions of dollars to his alma maters and other causes, such as:
- He donated $50 million to Oregon State University in 2022, as part of a $200 million donation towards the creation of a supercomputing institute on campus. [13]
- He donated $30 million to Stanford University in 2009, to build the Jen-Hsun Huang School of Engineering Center. [14]
- He donated $2 million to Oneida Baptist Institute in 2010, to build Huang Hall, a new girls’ dormitory and classroom building. [15]
Huang has also supported various initiatives and programs related to education, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), such as:
- The Nvidia Foundation, which supports global health and education causes [16]
- The Nvidia Inception Program, which supports startups in artificial intelligence and data science [17]
- The Nvidia Research [18], which collaborates with academic and industry partners on cutting-edge research projects [19]
- The Nvidia Deep Learning Institute, which provides training and certification on artificial intelligence and deep learning [20]
- The Nvidia GPU Technology Conference, which is the world’s largest event for GPU developers and enthusiasts [21]
Final Thoughts
Jensen Huang is an inspiring example of an entrepreneur who started with nothing but a vision and a passion for technology.
He co-founded Nvidia with $200 and a dream, and turned it into one of the most influential and innovative companies in the world.
He has also given back to his community and society through his philanthropy and leadership.
He is a true pioneer and visionary in the field of graphics and artificial intelligence.
I hope his story is inspiring to you and motivates you to pursue whatever it is you are pursuing in life.
Best,
BB
Thank you for reading this article.
