Nvidia is the world's leading manufacturer of graphics processing units In the AI gold rush, chip-makers are selling shovels – and they are in short supply. As the latest generation of artificial intelligence models like ChatGPT look set to transform our lives, the hardware that makes it all possible is becoming a strategic asset, with countries, companies and researchers all scrabbling to get hold of supplies. With talk of shortages lasting until at least next year, some would-be AI developers face being left behind.

Nintendo on Tuesday reported a solid net profit for the financial year to March on the strong performance of its blockbuster Switch console, but issued a cautious forecast. Uncertainties linked to the global chip shortage and potential production and transport delays caused by Covid-19 lockdowns could hit future profits, the Japanese gaming giant warned. The company, which has benefited from a string of popular titles including "Pokemon Legends: Arceus", posted a 2021-22 net profit of 477.7 billion yen ($3.7 billion), down just 0.6 percent on-year. But it expects net profit for the current financial year of 340 billion yen, a yearly drop of around 29 percent. Nintendo's profits were sent soaring by a boom in demand for video games during the pandemic and the runaway popularity of the Switch, which was launched in March 2017.

From the Beatles Let It Be to John Coltrane's A Love Supreme and Radiohead's OK Computer, record labels often remaster classic albums from the greats in many genres of music. These higher fidelity remasters are a welcome treat for aficionados and mainstream fans alike. But what if I told you, just like Led Zeppelin's or Van Halen's greatest hits, semiconductor chips could be "remastered" as well, and these remasters could help bail us out of the current chip shortage? For some folks that would totally rock, pun intended, but let's take a step back and look at the problem and potential solutions at hand first. The process of designing and verifying chips like the modern processors, controllers and sensors in cars, for example, can take years and require millions of dollars of R&D.

Intel Corp. is planning to invest investment more than $20 billion in two computer chip plants in central Ohio to help address a global semiconductor shortage. Intel Corp. is planning to invest investment more than $20 billion in two computer chip plants in central Ohio to help address a global semiconductor shortage. COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Intel will invest $20 billion in a new computer chip facility in Ohio amid a global shortage of microprocessors used in everything from phones and cars to video games. After years of heavy reliance on Asia for the production of computer chips, vulnerability to shortages of the crucial components was exposed in the U.S. and Europe as they began to emerge economically from the pandemic. The U.S. share of the worldwide chip manufacturing market has declined from 37% in 1990 to 12% today, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association, and shortages have become a potential risk.

"We're seeing 10- to 12-week delivery times for laptops and computing devices," said Sue Workman, chief information officer at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. "Those used to take a day or two." For the rapidly approaching fall semester, the school is hustling to equip classrooms with video displays, microphones and other tools so students have the option of taking some classes from home, Ms. Workman said. Orders for both displays and microphones have been delayed, she added. The Morning Download delivers daily insights and news on business technology from the CIO Journal team.

The ongoing worldwide shortages of semiconductors are starting to affect Japanese makers of home appliances and electronics. The lack of semiconductors has already resulted in delays in the deliveries of automobiles. Unless the situation is resolved, the economic recovery could be hampered, pundits said. Some car parts and accessories shops in Tokyo have run out of car audio and navigation systems. An official of Autobacs Seven Co. voiced concern over the impact on sales.

As the U.S. economy rebounds from its pandemic slump, a vital cog is in short supply: the computer chips that power a wide range of products that connect, transport and entertain us in a world increasingly dependent on technology. The shortage has already been rippling through various markets since last summer. It has made it difficult for schools to buy enough laptops for students forced to learn from home, delayed the release of popular products such as the iPhone 12 and created mad scrambles to find the latest video game consoles such as the PlayStation 5. But things have been getting even worse in recent weeks, particularly in the auto industry, where factories are shutting down because there aren't enough chips to finish building vehicles that are starting to look like computers on wheels. The problem was recently compounded by a grounded container ship that blocked the Suez Canal for nearly a week, choking off chips headed from Asia to Europe.

Beijing – Toyota Motor Corp. may have pioneered the just-in-time manufacturing strategy, but its decision to stockpile the chips that have become key components in cars goes back a decade to the Fukushima disaster. After the catastrophe severed Toyota's supply chains on March 11, 2011, the world's biggest automaker realized the lead-time for semiconductors was far too long to cope with devastating shocks such as natural disasters. The automaker came up with a business continuity plan (BCP) that required suppliers to stockpile anywhere from two to six months' worth of chips, depending on the time it takes from order to delivery, four sources said. That's why Toyota has so far been largely unscathed by a global shortage of semiconductors following a surge in demand for electrical goods under novel coronavirus lockdowns that has forced many rival automakers to suspend production, the sources said. "Toyota was, as far as we can tell, the only automaker properly equipped to deal with chip shortages," said a person familiar with Harman International, which specializes in car audio systems, displays and driver assistance technology.

Honda Motor Co. has boosted its operating profit outlook for the current fiscal year, a sign sales are progressing well despite the global chip shortage that is disrupting the auto industry's supply chain. The automaker is targeting an operating profit of ¥520 billion ($5 billion) for the 12 months through March, compared with a prior forecast for ¥420 billion, it said in an exchange filing Tuesday. That compares with analysts' average projection for ¥469 billion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The rosier-than-expected outlook comes as a global chip shortage is straining many automakers. Housebound consumers have ramped up purchases of personal computers, tablets and video games, depleting semiconductor supplies that are essential to the technology needed in modern-day cars.

Automakers around the world will likely be forced to continue production cutbacks in the coming months before a global semiconductor supply shortage can be resolved, industry experts say. Japan's Toyota Motor Corp., Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co. have said they partially halted production at factories around the world due to the chip shortage just as they began recovering from pandemic-forced plant shutdowns. Demand for chips, widely used in electronic devices including those in vehicles, has been surging across various sectors since last fall as the global economy picked up. "A gap in demand and supply for semiconductors suddenly occurred late last year due to a coincidence of some events including a sharp recovery in global auto sales, robust sales of smartphones and installment of the 5G networks," said Yoshiharu Izumi, senior analyst at SBI Securities Co. As video game sales jumped with people spending more time at home, robust production of game consoles ahead of the rollouts in November of Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.'s PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series X console from Microsoft Corp. also contributed to the chip supply crunch, experts say.