The company's leading artificial intelligence (AI) chip, Blackwell, is constructed from several chips interconnected through an intricate chip on wafer on substrate (CoWoS) advanced packaging technology provided by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), which serves as Nvidia's primary contract chip manufacturer.
"As we move into Blackwell, we will use largely CoWoS-L. Of course, we're still manufacturing Hopper, and Hopper will use CowoS-S. We will also transition the CoWoS-S capacity to CoWos-L," Huang said on the sidelines of an event by chip supplier Siliconware Precision Industries in Taiwan's central Taichung city.
"So it's not about reducing capacity. It's actually increasing capacity into CoWoS-L."
Nvidia's GPU architecture platform, known as Hopper, was referenced prior to the announcement of Blackwell in March 2024.
To date, Nvidia has primarily utilized a specific variant of CoWoS technology, CoWoS-S, for the integration of its AI chips.
On Wednesday, Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst at TF International Securities, indicated that Nvidia is pivoting towards a newer technology, CoWoS-L, which may impact its suppliers.
Additionally, reports from Taiwanese media suggest that Nvidia is reducing its CoWoS-S orders from TSMC, potentially affecting the revenue of the Taiwanese chip manufacturer.
Nvidia has been rapidly selling its Blackwell chips, matching TSMC's production pace; however, packaging has become a limiting factor due to capacity issues.
Despite this, Huang noted that the current advanced packaging capacity is "likely four times" what was available less than two years ago.
He refrained from commenting on the new U.S. export restrictions that limit AI chip exports to most countries, with exceptions for a select group of close U.S. allies, including Taiwan.
Huang is also anticipated to participate in Nvidia Taiwan's annual New Year celebration this week in Taipei.
Born in Tainan, Taiwan's historic capital, and having moved to the United States at the age of nine, Huang enjoys significant popularity in Taiwan, with local media closely tracking his activities.