Complicit Chips, informal sharing

Sunday, October 6th from 18:00 to 20:00
Jetsesteenweg 388, 1081 Brussels https://titipi.org/wiki/index.php/HQ

Complicit Chips gathers a group of researchers, activists, and artists to explore the complexities of high-density chips produced by NVIDIA.

NVIDIA is an enterprise recently transformed from a mid-sized producer of hard and software for accelerated computer graphics into a self-proclaimed 'world leader' of artificial intelligence (AI) computing. As of 2024, NIVIDA is valued at $2 trillion, surpassing Amazon and Google to be dubbed the 'Taylor Swift tech for investors'. Yet NVIDIA's chips for computing AI are resource-intensive offerings that—alongside game graphics, forest monitoring and medical devices—now include technologies used for policing and militant purposes. NVIDIA's numerous contracts with military agencies such as DARPA and arms companies such as Lockheed Martin are widely known. It's also clear that the their chips are directly and indirectly linked to the development of automated drones used in targeted killings and surveillance (in conflict zones like Gaza, for instance). Simultaneously, NVIDIA's hardware is now found in all Tesla vehicles, powers large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, and exists in the chips of many smartphones. We're looking to reckon with the way that the computing industry is interwoven with both warfaring operations and everyday life. The fact that NVIDIA produces software powered chips that we want for our screens and games, but also are used in the Israel 1 supercomputers matters — a lot. It's worth figuring out how our own actions are intertwined with the issues at hand.

After two days of collaborative community research on the nebulous world of software-operated hardware, we will informally share what we found. Drinks and delicious Syrian vegetarian and vegan food served!

For more details, visit this wiki page summarising the Complicit Chips research session: https://titipi.org/wiki/index.php/Complicit_Chips.