Jensen Huang leads Nvidia push to tap pension funds for AI boom
Jensen Huang announced that Nvidia is working with a slate of global investors to create financing platforms that could mobilise more than $500 billion for AI infrastructure. The plan relies largely on third-party capital rather than Nvidia's own balance sheet, positioning AI compute as a form of productive infrastructure.
The chipmaker named partners including BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, Blackstone, Brookfield and KKR. The consortium will offer financing deals that may include residual-value support of up to 25 percent on selected purchases.
Wall Street analysts at Morgan Stanley and Bank of America welcomed the move, calling Nvidia chips unusually financeable. However, media commentator Ben Thompson warned that attaching safety-seeking assets to a massive pool of GPUs introduces new risks.
The financing model could accelerate the deployment of AI hardware across data centres, making it easier for pension funds and other long-term investors to gain exposure to the sector. The next step will be the rollout of the financing platforms, with the first deals expected to close before the end of the year.
Apple appointed Nate Gatten, former head of government affairs at American Airlines, as vice president of government affairs, effective 31 August. Gatten will report directly to Tim Cook and is expected to navigate the company's relationship with the current U.S. administration.
The hire signals Apple's intent to strengthen its lobbying presence ahead of a leadership transition in September, when hardware chief John Ternus will assume the CEO role while Cook remains executive chairman.
Gatten's experience in both the airline industry and financial services may help Apple address regulatory challenges and secure favourable policy outcomes. Observers will watch how Apple's policy strategy evolves under his guidance.
Google co-founder Sergey Brin has been personally urging DeepMind teams to accelerate development of the Gemini model, according to reports. The push comes as rival Anthropic's Claude Mythos preview gained attention.
Internal testing reportedly delayed Gemini by two months because its coding capabilities lagged behind competitors. A recent organisational change gave DeepMind deputy Koray Kavukcuoglu final authority over major decisions, reporting to CEO Sundar Pichai.
The shift marks a further integration of DeepMind into Google's core operations, reducing the lab's independence since its 2014 acquisition. The next milestone will be Gemini's public rollout, which could reshape the competitive AI landscape.