Microsoft Just Unveiled a Brand-New AI Chip. Could It Be the “Nvidia Killer” Everyone’s Been Looking For?

On Monday, Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) unveiled its latest AI chip architecture, the Maia 300.

And the company went out of its way to point out the ways in which the Maia 300 was superior to graphics processing units (GPUs). “This is our biggest bet yet on our own silicon,” said CEO Satya Nadella.

Missed AI’s “Act 1”? Act 2 Could Be 14x Bigger. Most investors think they missed the AI boat because they didn’t buy Nvidia in 2005. But according to our analysts, we’re only at the end of “Act 1″—the R&D phase. “Act 2” is the global rollout. Continue »

This was seen as a shot across the bow to the world’s premier GPU maker, Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA).

So is the Maia 300 the “Nvidia killer” that everyone has been anticipating for years? It might be, but not in the way you might think. Here’s what’s really going on.

Cutting the cost of AI

The Maia 300 is an upgraded version of the Maia 200,…