The Nvidia Way

Under the “mission is the boss” philosophy, Jensen would start every new project by designating a leader, or a “Pilot in Command” (PIC), who would report directly to Jensen. He found that this created far more accountability—and a far greater incentive to do a job well—than did the standard divisional structure.

As we saw in the Introduction, perhaps his favorite tool for showing the rest of the company his thought process is the whiteboard.

resources across the company, from Jensen to senior engineering staff, may be brought in to solve the issue. “ ‘No one loses alone’ is particularly pertinent in the sales organization,” said Jay Puri, head of global field operations. Referring to the head count on his sales team, he added that “We are so small compared to our competitors that when

Jensen’s strategic brilliance ensured that competitors would have difficulty breaking into a market that Nvidia had created and which was effectively based on its proprietary hardware and software. Nvidia’s current position—among chip designers and in the national and global economies—seems unassailable. As Amir Salek put it: “The moat is CUDA.”

In a late 2023 report, Goldman Sachs predicted generative AI-driven cost reductions could total more than $3 trillion over the next decade across industries. Nvidia management has repeatedly stated that the $1 trillion that has been invested in global data-center computer infrastructure over the years, which is currently powered by traditional CPU

is critical you speak up,” is how he described the culture at Nvidia. “You would get in more trouble if you didn’t.”

than yourself.” However, as Nvidia grew and began adding new employees at a pace of more than one hundred a month, executives understood that they would occasionally make the wrong decision. Better to correct those mistakes as soon as possible than to let them fester and harm Nvidia’s culture.

The Innovator’s Dilemma taught Jensen, as it has generations of business leaders, how to protect his company from competition. It helped him understand the threat from low-cost competitors, which is why he launched lines of low-tier and mid-tier Nvidia chips made from parts that were not quite good enough for the top-of-the-line chips. It convinced

was new territory for Nvidia. Since his very first meeting with Curtis Priem and Chris Malachowsky at the Denny’s in East San Jose, Jensen had always focused on the importance of clearly defining market opportunities and developing new