Partnering with Etched: Building the Inference Machine
THE SO WHAT
Sequoia publicly anchoring around Etched’s “Inference Machine” frames inference as its own hardware category, not just a GPU SKU choice. If you’re planning multi-year AI infra, you now have to model a world where specialized inference silicon sits alongside — or in some cases instead of — general-purpose accelerators.
READ THE SOURCE
MORE FROM THE WIRE
Applied AIOpenAI is spending $30 billion on a new mega 3.2 GW data center in Georgia — and it's trying really hard to quell local opposition
$30B for 3.2 GW in one state makes AI data centers look like power plants with compute attached—local politics and community benefits become core to infra strategy. If you're planning large AI build‑outs, start treating permitting, water, and public sentiment as first‑class constraints alongside chips and capital.
Applied AIAI chip startup Etched defies skeptics, hits $10.3B valuation from big-name investors
A $10.3B valuation for an inference-only chip startup is a bet that the bottleneck has shifted from training to serving at scale — and that “no GPUs required” will resonate with buyers locked out of current supply. Infra teams should start pressure-testing their dependency on GPU-centric stacks and what it would take to qualify a new inference vendor in 2026–2027.
Applied AIGoogle closes in on another billion- user product with Gemini
Gemini approaching 1B users off a 750M base in February means AI assistants are no longer niche tools—they're mass‑market distribution channels. If you're building on or competing with Google, assume Gemini integration will become a default surface for discovery, support, and commerce in your category.
Applied AIReinventing hiring for the AI-driven labor market
If AI is reshaping roles faster than job families and comp bands can update, recruitment stops being back-office and becomes a strategic forecasting function. Talent leaders should be working with product and data teams now to define AI-augmented roles and assessment criteria, or risk hiring for jobs that no longer exist in 18 months.