Quick Facts
Founded
April 5, 1993
Headquarters
Santa Clara, California, USA
CEO & Co-Founder
Jensen Huang
Employees
~29,600 (2024)
Market Cap
~$3.0 trillion (Jan 2026)
Annual Revenue
$79.8B (FY 2025)
Stock Symbol
NASDAQ: NVDA
Key Products
GeForce GPUs, Data Center GPUs, AI platforms
Industry Position
80%+ AI chip market share
Nvidia Corporation is an American multinational technology company specializing in graphics processing units (GPUs), artificial intelligence computing, and accelerated computing platforms. Founded in 1993, Nvidia has evolved from a gaming graphics card manufacturer into the dominant provider of AI computing infrastructure, with its chips powering most of the world's AI systems including ChatGPT, Google's Gemini, and autonomous vehicles.
History
Founding and Early Years (1993-1999)
Nvidia was founded on April 5, 1993, by Jensen Huang (CEO), Chris Malachowsky, and Curtis Priem. The company name is a play on "invidia," the Latin word for envy, and "NV" for "next version." Nvidia's mission was to bring 3D graphics to the gaming and multimedia markets.
The company's breakthrough came in 1999 with the GeForce 256, marketed as the world's first GPU (Graphics Processing Unit)—a term Nvidia coined. This chip revolutionized gaming by offloading graphics processing from CPUs to specialized parallel processors.
Gaming Dominance (2000-2015)
Throughout the 2000s and early 2010s, Nvidia competed fiercely with ATI (later acquired by AMD) for gaming GPU market share. The GeForce brand became synonymous with high-performance PC gaming, while Nvidia also supplied graphics for Microsoft's Xbox and Sony's PlayStation 3.
In 2006, Nvidia introduced CUDA (Compute Unified Device Architecture), a parallel computing platform that allowed developers to use GPUs for general-purpose computing beyond graphics. This seemingly niche technology would become foundational to Nvidia's AI dominance a decade later.
AI Transformation (2016-Present)
The deep learning revolution transformed Nvidia from a gaming company into an AI infrastructure powerhouse. Researchers discovered that GPUs' parallel processing capabilities made them ideal for training neural networks—processing that would take CPUs weeks could be done in days on GPUs.
Nvidia's data center revenue exploded from $339 million in 2016 to over $47 billion in 2024, overtaking gaming as the company's primary business. The company's market capitalization surged from $30 billion in 2016 to over $3 trillion in 2026, briefly making it the world's most valuable company.
Products and Technology
Data Center / AI Computing
Nvidia's data center business has become its largest revenue driver, accounting for over 60% of total revenue:
Key AI Products:
H100 & H200 Tensor Core GPUs
Flagship AI training chips using Hopper architecture; H100 costs ~$25,000-40,000 per chip
A100 Tensor Core GPU
Previous generation workhorse for AI training and inference; still widely deployed
GH200 Grace Hopper Superchip
Combines Nvidia GPU with Arm-based CPU for massive memory bandwidth
DGX Systems
Pre-configured AI supercomputers with 8 GPUs; DGX H100 costs ~$300,000
NVLink & NVSwitch
High-bandwidth interconnects allowing GPUs to work together at unprecedented scale
GeForce Gaming GPUs
Nvidia's GeForce brand remains the dominant consumer gaming GPU line, with the RTX 40-series (based on Ada Lovelace architecture) offering ray tracing and DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling) AI upscaling technology. Gaming still generates ~25-30% of Nvidia's revenue.
Professional Visualization (Quadro/RTX)
Professional GPUs for content creation, 3D modeling, and scientific visualization, used by designers, architects, and engineers. Now branded under the RTX umbrella.
Automotive
Nvidia Drive platform powers autonomous vehicle systems for companies including Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, Jaguar Land Rover, and Chinese EV manufacturers. This segment generates ~5% of revenue but is considered a major growth opportunity.
Market Position and Competition
AI Chip Market Share (2026)
| Company | Market Share | Key Products |
|---|---|---|
| Nvidia | ~80-85% | H100, H200, A100 |
| AMD | ~5-8% | MI300X Instinct |
| Google (TPU) | ~3-5% | TPU v5e (internal use) |
| Intel | ~2-3% | Gaudi 2/3 |
| Others | ~2-5% | AWS Trainium, custom chips |
Nvidia's dominance stems from several advantages:
- CUDA ecosystem: 15+ years of developer tools and libraries
- Software stack: Comprehensive AI frameworks optimized for Nvidia hardware
- Performance leadership: Chips consistently outperform competitors
- Supply constraints: Multi-month waiting periods create moat
- Network effects: Most AI models trained on Nvidia, creating compatibility lock-in
Challenges and Controversies
Export Controls
U.S. government export restrictions limit sales of advanced AI chips to China, impacting Nvidia's revenue in one of its largest markets. The company has developed China-specific chips (A800, H800) with reduced capabilities to comply with regulations.
Supply Constraints and Pricing
Overwhelming demand for H100 chips has created multi-month backlogs and accusations of preferential allocation to favored customers. Some enterprises report 6-12 month wait times for large orders.
Software Complexity
Enterprise customers have reported that Nvidia's AI software stack is difficult to deploy and optimize, requiring specialized expertise. This complexity has created opportunities for startups offering simplified AI infrastructure.
Antitrust Scrutiny
Nvidia's market dominance has attracted regulatory attention in the U.S., EU, and China, with investigations examining whether the company engages in anti-competitive bundling or licensing practices.
Financial Performance
Nvidia has experienced explosive growth driven by AI demand:
- FY 2025 Revenue: $79.8 billion (up 125% YoY)
- Data Center Revenue: $47.5 billion (up 217% YoY)
- Net Income: $32.4 billion (40.6% profit margin)
- Stock Performance: Up ~240% in 2024, ~3,500% since 2019
The company's market capitalization briefly exceeded $3 trillion in 2024, making it one of the world's most valuable companies alongside Apple and Microsoft.
Leadership
Jensen Huang has served as CEO since founding Nvidia in 1993, making him one of the longest-tenured tech CEOs. Known for his signature leather jacket and animated product presentations, Huang has become the public face of the AI revolution. Under his leadership, Nvidia's value has grown from zero to over $3 trillion in 31 years.
Summary:
Nvidia has transformed from a gaming graphics company into the infrastructure backbone of the AI revolution. Its GPUs power the training and deployment of most large language models, autonomous systems, and advanced AI applications. With 80%+ market share in AI computing and explosive revenue growth, Nvidia has become one of the world's most valuable companies. However, the company faces challenges including export restrictions, supply constraints, increasing competition from AMD and custom chips, and regulatory scrutiny over its market dominance. Nvidia's future depends on maintaining its technological lead while navigating geopolitical tensions and an evolving competitive landscape.