California wants to equip its workforce with AI skills by partnering with Nvidia on training across the state. The AI chip giant is headquartered in Santa Clara and is currently the third most valuable company in the world.
California Governor Gavin Newsom and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang announced the “first-of-its-kind” partnership that will focus on training students in AI, creating jobs, and using AI to solve real-world problems.
“Together with California, Nvidia will train 100,000 students, college faculty, developers, and data scientists,” Huang stated, adding that the aim was “to prepare California for tomorrow’s challenges” and “unlock prosperity.”
The partnership brings AI workshops, labs, curriculum, certifications, and technology from Nvidia to community colleges. Individuals have the opportunity to enhance their careers through these efforts.
The state of California benefits from a pipeline of AI talent and will explore how it can nurture early-stage AI startups through the effort.
“We’re in the early stages of a new industrial revolution that will transform trillion-dollar industries around the world,” Huang stated.
Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang talks next to a robot. Credit: JOSH EDELSON / AFP
AI has helped reduce repetitive tasks and streamline communication, say company leaders. A recent Microsoft study found that even though employers are looking for candidates with AI skills, only 39% have provided AI training for existing employees. And the majority of AI use in the office is secretive, with 78% using AI tools at work “without guidance or clearance from the top.”
At the same time, it’s expensive to create AI: One model could cost $100 million today and tens of billions of dollars in the next few years. AI could also drive energy emissions up, as seen by Google’s July environmental report.
Despite AI’s drawbacks, it could have a positive impact in California through the new partnership. California is the most populated state in the nation, with over 39 million residents. California’s unemployment rate hit 5.3% in February; as of June, there were 999,897 people unemployed in the state.
