January 29, 2025 – novelsnet.com
In a significant discussion at the Bloomberg Tech Summit held in London on October 22, 2024, Christophe Fouquet, CEO of ASML Holding NV, addressed the recent upheaval in the AI sector caused by the introduction of China’s AI chatbot, DeepSeek. This event precipitated a massive $1 trillion selloff in the stock market earlier this week, notably impacting shares of AI firms including ASML.
Fouquet conveyed a positive outlook regarding the decrease in production costs for semiconductor manufacturing, suggesting it could be advantageous for ASML, a leading producer of lithography machines used in chipmaking. This comes after ASML's shares, along with other AI-related companies, experienced a sharp decline when DeepSeek's open-source model revealed it could match the performance of its Western counterparts at significantly lower costs.
While major tech companies like Meta, Microsoft, and Google quickly rebounded from the initial market shock, attributing their recovery to potential benefits from reduced input costs, Nvidia’s shares have lagged, sparking a broader debate over the necessity of expensive AI production infrastructure.
During the earnings call for ASML’s fourth quarter, Fouquet emphasized the ongoing relevance of Moore's Law — the principle that the capacity of microchips doubles approximately every two years while costs halve — stating it as a driver for both innovation and opportunity within the industry. He pointed out that the primary challenges for AI expansion are the associated costs and energy demands, suggesting that any reductions in these areas could propel the sector forward.
“Moore’s Law is about reducing cost every single generation so that you create more opportunity,” Fouquet commented during the call. He also warned investors to anticipate more unexpected developments, or “elephants in the room,” as competition in the AI landscape intensifies.
Despite the market turmoil on Monday, ASML’s stock rose nearly 9% in early trading on Wednesday after the company reported a significant increase in machine bookings in the last quarter of 2024, indicating sustained demand amidst the disruptive trends in the AI space.
This report underscores the dynamic nature of the tech industry, where innovation often leads to rapid shifts in market dynamics, impacting companies and investors alike.
References: Bloomberg via Getty Images
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