Nvidia founder Huang honored with top semi industry award

The founder of Nvidia has won the semiconductor industry’s top annual honor, the Robert Noyce Award, granted by the Semiconductor Industry Association.

Jensen Huang, founder and CEO of Nvidia, is a “trailblazer in building accelerated computing platforms,” SIA said in a statement on Thursday. He will accept the award Nov. 18. The annual award goes to a leader who has made outstanding contributions to the semiconductor industry in technology or public policy.

“Jensen Huang’s extraordinary vision and tireless execution have greatly strengthened our industry, revolutionized computing and advanced artificial intelligence,” said John Neuffer, SIA president and CEO. His work impacts gaming,  scientific computing and self-driving cars,  among other innovations, he added.

Huang founded Nvidia in 1993, starting with 3D graphics used heavily in the gaming market. GPUs used in gaming have advanced to uses in a variety of computers, robots and more. He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering from Oregon State and Stanford, respectively.

In receiving the honor, Huang said it recognizes the body of work of his colleagues at Nvidia. “It has been the greatest joy and privilege to have grown up with the semiconductor and computing industries,” he said. “As we enter the era of AI, robotics, digital biology and the metaverse, we will see super-exponential technology advances. There’s never been a more exciting or important time to be in the semiconductor and computer industries.”

SIA represents nearly all the companies in the U.S. chip industry and two-thirds of non-U.S. chip firms based on revenues.  The Noyce Award is named in honor of semi industry pioneer Robert N. Noyce, founder of Fairchild Semiconductor and Intel.

Analysts widely respect Huang and Nvidia’s financial and technology performance. Of the award, Patrick Moorhead of Moor Insights & Strategy tweeted after the announcement, “Well deserved.”

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