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Jensen Huang, born on February 17, 1963, in Tainan, Taiwan, is a prominent figure in the technology industry. He immigrated to the United States at a young age and pursued his education, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from Oregon State University in 1984 and a Master of Science degree in electrical engineering from Stanford University in 1992. Prior to co-founding NVIDIA, Huang held engineering roles at LSI Logic and was a director at Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), gaining valuable experience in chip design and computer architecture.
In 1993, Huang co-founded NVIDIA with Chris Malachowsky and Curtis Priem, driven by a vision to create a company focused on accelerating graphics for the burgeoning PC gaming market. Under his leadership, NVIDIA quickly established itself as a pioneer in the development of Graphics Processing Units (GPUs), which revolutionized 3D graphics rendering. Over the decades, Huang strategically steered NVIDIA beyond just gaming, recognizing the broader computational power of GPUs for scientific computing, professional visualization, and particularly, artificial intelligence and deep learning. This foresight transformed NVIDIA into a dominant force in AI hardware and software, making its GPUs indispensable for data centers, autonomous vehicles, and various other high-performance computing applications.
Huang's leadership style is often described as visionary and hands-on, deeply involved in product development and strategic direction. He has consistently emphasized the importance of continuous innovation and long-term research and development, which has enabled NVIDIA to maintain its competitive edge. His impact on the technology landscape extends beyond just business success; he is credited with ushering in the era of accelerated computing, fundamentally changing how complex problems are solved across numerous industries. Huang has received numerous awards and recognitions for his contributions to technology and business, cementing his status as a leading innovator and entrepreneur.