UPDATE 1-Nvidia AI developer conference kicks off with new chips in focus

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By Max A. Cherney and Stephen Nellis

SAN JOSE, Calif., March 18 (Reuters) - Artificial intelligence semiconductor powerhouse Nvidia kicked off its annual developer conference on Monday, with investors focused on new chip announcements from Chief Executive Jensen Huang in an afternoon keynote address.

Nvidia's new chip and software announcements at GTC 2024 will help determine whether Nvidia can maintain its leadership position as the dominant seller of the tools needed to fuel the past year's frenzy around AI. Nvidia dominates the data center AI chip market, capturing roughly an 80% share last year.

Its shares have surged 240% over the past 12 months, making Nvidia the U.S. stock market's third most valuable company, behind only Microsoft and Apple.

That stellar rally leaves Nvidia's stock at risk of plummeting back to earth if the Santa Clara, California company fails to expand its AI business as much as investors expect.

Its stock climbed 1% ahead of Huang's keynote address, set to take place at a Silicon Valley hockey arena at 1:00 p.m. PT(2000 GMT), the largest venue the company has secured for such an event.

Nvidia's market share is expected to drop several percentage points in 2024 as new products from rivals such as Intel and Advanced Micro Devices hit the market.

Huang is expected to announce the next generation of AI processors designed by the company. The forthcoming B100 chip is expected to include significant improvements over its predecessor, the H100.

Though Nvidia is widely regarded as a chip designer, the company has built a significant battery of software products as well. Huang is also expected to unveil a swath of new products related to software on Monday.

Nvidia said earlier this year its software and services business had reached an annual run rate of $1 billion by the end of the company's last fiscal year.

The company is holding GTC in person for the first time since 2019. It expects roughly 16,000 people to attend, about double its last in-person event.

(Reporting by Max A. Cherney and Stephen Nellis in San Francisco; additional reporting by Noel Randewich; Editing by Tom Hogue and Bill Berkrot)