Subhi Agrawal
Elon Musk is focusing on supercomputers to enhance his diverse business empire with AI. The tech billionaire intends to invest $500 million in establishing a supercomputer in New York, in addition to creating another supercomputer cluster named Cortex at Tesla’s headquarters in Texas.
The Impact of Musk’s Supercomputer Investments on Tesla and xAI
Additionally, Musk’s startup xAI revealed in June that its AI model Grok will be trained using a supercomputer named Colossus, which has been set up in Tennessee, with part of it already operational.
How will Musk’s significant investments in supercomputers affect Tesla, xAI, and his other businesses?
Tesla car owners can utilize two sets of driver assistance features Autopilot, which includes automatic steering, acceleration, and braking, and the more advanced Full Self-Driving (FSD) system. The FSD system offers capabilities like automatic lane changes, parking, and stopping at traffic lights and stop signs, available for a subscription of $99 per month.
“Autopilot and Full Self-Driving (Supervised) are intended for use with a fully attentive driver, who has their hands on the wheel and is prepared to take over at any moment,” Tesla stated.
However, the electric vehicle manufacturer reportedly intends to enhance its Autopilot and FSD features using a custom-built supercomputer named Dojo, which has been performing tasks for Tesla since last year, according to a CNBC report.
Tesla’s Dojo: Driving AI Training
The supercomputer is utilized by the company to analyze the extensive video footage and data collected by Tesla vehicles to train its AI models. With around five million Tesla cars equipped with eight or more cameras, the high-tech electric vehicles gather vast amounts of data, averaging 10 million miles driven on the road.
“They’re streaming all of that video back to Tesla,” Steven Dickens, chief technology advisor at the Futurum Group, said in the report.
Dojo may also be used by the company to train its humanoid robots, known as Optimus, which are expected to be introduced on Tesla factory floors starting next year. Additionally, Tesla reportedly plans to invest $10 billion in AI in 2024.
Achieving fully autonomous self-driving cars is essential for Tesla to sustain its $63 trillion valuation, especially as it contends with strong competition from rivals like Waymo (owned by Alphabet), GM’s Cruise, Amazon’s Zoox, and Chinese competitors such as Didi and Baidu.
The company was originally slated to hold its Robotaxi event in August, but it has now been rescheduled for October.
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