It Was Worth Being Called the 'AI Woodstock'... Jensen Huang's Keynote Filled with Cheers

Keynote Speech Venue Filled with Languages from Around the World
Over 10,000 Seats Sold Out Due to Crowds
Audience Cheers as Character-like Robot Appears

Jensen Huang, CEO of NVIDIA, received cheers from the audience as he delivered the keynote speech on the first day of the GTC 2024 event on the 18th (local time). At the venue, languages from around the world such as English, French, Spanish, and Chinese could be heard, suggesting that NVIDIA's artificial intelligence (AI) event has established itself as a global festival.

On the 18th (local time), the SAP Center in San Jose, USA, was filled with attendees before the GTC 2024 keynote speech. By the time the keynote began, seats up to the third floor were fully occupied. / Photo by Kim Pyeonghwa

The SAP Center in San Jose, California, where the keynote speech took place, is a comprehensive arena with a volume of 16,781㎥ and consists of three floors. On that day, all over 10,000 seats prepared at the SAP Center were sold out up to the third floor due to the large crowd. This was why many people could be seen lining up around the SAP Center long before the event started, two hours ahead, to listen to the keynote speech.

CEO Jensen Huang delivered a skillful presentation interspersed with humorous remarks throughout the speech. He expressed pride in the GTC event, saying, "There is no conference anywhere in the world where researchers from various scientific fields gather to explore next-generation 6G wireless communication, robotics, autonomous vehicles, and AI-based robot control methods."

Every time Jensen Huang introduced a new AI chip or made an important announcement, cheers erupted from the audience, giving the impression of attending a famous singer's concert. The industry referred to this GTC event as the ‘AI Woodstock’ (the legendary American rock festival). Before the event started, some attendees expressed their joy by doing wave motions in the venue while listening to the latest pop songs.

On the 18th (local time), spectators lined up at the SAP Center to watch the keynote speech by Jensen Huang, CEO of NVIDIA / Photo by Kim Pyeonghwa

At the end of the event, when NVIDIA’s self-trained robots ‘Orange’ and ‘Gray’ made a surprise appearance, the audience burst into applause. The two robots, about the height of an adult male’s mid-thigh, were considered cute by the audience due to their character-like appearances. CEO Jensen Huang expressed his ambition to become a leading company in the robotics field based on the technological expertise accumulated in AI.

Bloomberg reported on the event, stating, "When Jensen Huang gave his first keynote speech at GTC in 2009, fewer than 1,000 people were seated in the venue," and added, "Since then, NVIDIA’s stock price has surged by 24,000%, and this time, more than 10,000 people are listening to the keynote speech live." The event vividly demonstrated how much NVIDIA’s status has risen thanks to the AI effect.