Thanks to the AI boom, Nvidia has become one of the most impressive technology companies in recent years. As of the end of February, its market value exceeded $2 trillion, ranking among the top three in global market value, second only to Microsoft and Apple.
However, AI chips are not Nvidia’s only focus. The company is actively leveraging its advantages in the trend of artificial intelligence to expand its presence in a broader field. Nvidia has been expanding its venture capital portfolio by investing in startups that apply artificial intelligence to various industries.
According to analysis by financial data company Dealogic, Nvidia invested in nearly 30 startups last year, which is more than twice the number of investments made in 2022.
Nvidia’s investment interests cover fields such as software, pharmaceuticals, and healthcare. Cathay Health, a healthcare investment focused company, revealed that in May this year, Moon Surgical received $55.4 million in venture capital, led by French venture capital firm Sofinova Partners and NVentures, an investment division under NVIDIA.
Nvidia also disclosed in its February filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission that it holds shares in small artificial intelligence companies including Recursion Pharmaceuticals, a drug development company, and SoundSound AI, a speech recognition technology developer.
Nvidia’s investment seems to have yielded substantial returns. The financial report shows that as of January, Nvidia’s investment value was approximately $1.55 billion, compared to only $300 million in the same period last year. Last year, Nvidia’s stock price soared by 239%.
The Wall Street Journal points out that the significance of these investments goes beyond financial returns. By investing in companies focused on artificial intelligence, Nvidia has further stimulated demand for high-performance chips and cultivated what it calls an “ecosystem”.
A spokesperson for Nvidia stated, “Nvidia’s corporate investment department focuses on strategic partnerships, which stimulate collaborative innovation, enhance the Nvidia platform, and expand the ecosystem.”
Nvidia CEO Huang Renxun also emphasized the development potential of this ecosystem. At the financial report conference call in February, Huang Renxun talked about cooperation with “biotechnology companies, healthcare companies, financial services companies, artificial intelligence developers, large language model developers, autonomous vehicle companies, robot companies”. He said, “All these start-ups, large companies, medical, financial services, automotive and other industries work on Nvidia’s platform, and we directly support them.”