Google's "Ironwood" TPU: Is This Just Another Shot Across Nvidia's Bow?
So, Google's got a new chip, the Ironwood TPU. Big deal. They're acting like they've reinvented the wheel, but let's be real: this is all about trying to muscle in on Nvidia's AI turf. Sundar Pichai's probably doing cartwheels, or whatever passes for excitement in Silicon Valley these days.
The claim is that Ironwood's four times faster than the old one. Okay, great. But "four times faster" than what exactly? My toaster heats bread faster than my old toaster, but it doesn't mean I'm gonna start a Michelin-star restaurant. They say it eliminates "data bottlenecks." Sounds impressive, right? But what bottlenecks are they really talking about? The ones they created themselves?
And this bit about Anthropic using a million of these things for their Claude model... Give me a break. It's all part of the Google-Anthropic love-in, a cozy little arrangement where they scratch each other's backs and pretend they're not just trying to build an AI monopoly.
Cloud Wars: More Hype Than Substance?
Google's touting cloud revenue growth, a 34% jump. Azure's up 40%, Amazon's AWS only 20%. But let's not pretend these numbers tell the whole story. It's like comparing apples to oranges—or, more accurately, comparing a shiny new apple to a whole damn orchard of oranges. AWS is still the king of the hill, and Google's playing catch-up.
And this capital spending forecast... $93 billion! That's a lot of zeroes. Where's all that money really going? To build actual infrastructure, or to line the pockets of executives and fund more pointless "innovation" projects that will be scrapped in six months? I dunno, maybe I'm just cynical. Offcourse, I am.
They're signing billion-dollar cloud deals left and right. Sounds impressive, sure. But are these deals actually profitable? Or are they just buying market share with unsustainable discounts? This ain't a charity, people.
My landlord's raising my rent again, by the way. Says "market forces" are to blame. Guess I should've invested in Nvidia stock price instead of paying for groceries.
Custom Silicon: The Emperor's New Clothes?
The article mentions that TPUs fall into the category of custom silicon, which "can offer advantages on price, performance and efficiency." Can offer advantages? That's the best they can do? It can also rain money from the sky, but I'm not holding my breath. According to Google's rolling out its most powerful AI chip, taking aim at Nvidia with custom silicon, this new chip is Google's seventh generation TPU.
Let's be honest, "custom silicon" is tech-bro speak for "we're trying to be different, even if it doesn't actually make things better." It's like brewing your own artisanal kombucha when you could just buy a perfectly good bottle at the store.
Google's been working on these TPUs for a decade. A decade! You'd think after ten years they'd have something more revolutionary than "four times faster." I mean, my phone is probably faster than the computers they used to send Apollo to the moon, but it doesn't mean I'm going to start a space program in my backyard.
But wait a minute... Maybe I'm being too harsh. Maybe Google really is onto something here. Maybe Ironwood will be the Nvidia killer they're hoping for. Maybe... Nah, who am I kidding?
So, What's the Real Endgame?
Google wants to control the AI infrastructure, plain and simple. They're throwing money at it, building chips, and making deals, all in the hopes of becoming the go-to platform for AI. Will it work? Maybe. But the road is paved with failed Google projects. Remember Google Glass? Or Google+? Yeah, exactly. It's gonna be a bloodbath.
