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NVIDIA DGX-1 Initial Launch Reportedly Had Zero Orders; Elon Musk/OpenAI Was the First Customer
Friday, December 5, 2025 at 02:31 PM
When NVIDIA announced the DGX-1, its first low-cost AI GPU supercomputer, it reportedly received zero initial orders globally. CEO Jensen Huang stated that Elon Musk was the only one who saw its potential and received the very first unit for the team that became OpenAI.
Context
NVIDIA introduced its DGX-1 deep learning system at GTC on April 5, 2016, with U.S. availability in June 2016. This system, purpose-built for AI, featured eight NVIDIA Tesla P100 GPUs (Pascal architecture), delivering approximately 170 teraflops of deep-learning throughput. Marketed as a powerful alternative to hundreds of x86 servers, the DGX-1 carried a launch price of about $129,000.
Despite its advanced technology, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang disclosed that the DGX-1 initially received "no purchase orders" at its announcement. The pivotal first customer was Elon Musk, representing OpenAI. Huang personally delivered one of the initial units to Musk and OpenAI in 2016, highlighting a critical early adoption that helped establish the DGX-1's role in the burgeoning AI industry.
Sources (8)
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