NVIDIA's Unusual Bets That Made Them The Biggest Company In The World

August 11
23 mins

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Episode Description

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Would you burn an entire year of profit, walk away from your core customer, and bet the company on unproven technology that falls flat for its first twelve months? That is the decision NVIDIA actually made, and Eric walks through it from Thinking Machine. Neil answers honestly. The back half turns personal: Neil is recording from Legoland mid-vacation, and the two get into what it took to actually take the time off, being alone with his kids for the first time, and what that trade looks like when you run a company.

Key takeaways
◾The bets that look reckless in year one are the ones with no competition in year five
◾Founder control is what makes an unpopular decade-long bet survivable
◾Time off is an operating decision, not a reward you earn later

Chapters
00:00 Nvidia's Big Bet
04:18 The Sega Deal and Near-Bankruptcy
08:59 Six Flat Years After CUDA
12:14 Vacation and Family Life
17:52 Bored on Vacation, Hunting Deals

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