What would tech billionaire Jensen Huang study if he went to college now?

(Dan Tri) - American billionaire Jensen Huang - CEO of the world's most valuable corporation today - said that if he were to attend university today, he would choose the major with the most potential.

Instead of choosing AI or programming, Jensen Huang returned to fundamental science.

During a recent business trip to Beijing, China, Nvidia's CEO, Jensen Huang, candidly shared his thoughts on the most promising field of study at the moment.

Specifically, if he were a freshman at this time, Mr. Huang would choose a field of study in physical sciences – the foundation for the next wave of AI; instead of pursuing a software engineering field such as computer science or artificial intelligence engineering.

Mr. Huang has repeatedly mentioned the concept of "physical AI" and predicted that this will be the next wave in AI development.

Tech billionaire Jensen Huang (Photo: CNBC).

According to Huang, the development of AI has gone through three waves. The first wave, "perceptual AI," began about 12-14 years ago with the emergence of the AlexNet computer network architecture, which allows computers to recognize images using deep learning algorithms.

The second wave is "generative AI," where AI not only understands content but can also create language, images, programming code, and more.

The third wave is "rational AI," which is the current stage, where AI can reason, solve problems, and recognize situations it has never experienced before. This forms the foundation for the development of agent AI – "digital employees" – that can replace humans in many tasks.

According to Huang, the fourth wave is "physical AI," where AI not only processes abstract data but also begins to grasp fundamental physical laws in everyday life such as friction, inertia, cause and effect, etc.

"Physical AI" will be incorporated into physical entities, specifically robots, to meet diverse needs. At this point, robots will be far more sophisticated, able to predict movements, calculate the necessary force to perform tasks without harming the people and objects they interact with... These super-intelligent robots will then help solve the global labor shortage problem.

Huang believes that "physical AI" will play a key role in building next-generation factory and industrial park systems. Future factories will have a very high level of automation.

This is especially urgent as the world faces a serious labor shortage. Along this developmental path, engineers who embrace "physical AI" will be in high demand in the job market in the near future.

Intelligent robots will change the landscape of the global labor market.

Jensen Huang (61 years old) is currently running Nvidia, the world's largest company by market capitalization, with a value of $4.21 trillion.

In 1984, at the age of 20, he graduated with a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from Oregon State University (USA). He went on to earn a master's degree in electrical engineering from Stanford University (USA) in 1992.

According to Mr. Huang, pursuing foundational science majors such as physics, geology, and chemistry at this time will help students get ahead of the next wave in the job market.

Mr. Huang is a tech billionaire who actively discusses the skills young people need in today's world (Photo: CNBC).

Nowadays, programming has become much simpler, and AI will gradually change the way we program completely, making learning coding languages ​​less important than before.

He argued that in the current context, with the explosive development of AI, students need to constantly ask themselves in their studies and daily lives: How can I use AI to support my learning and organize my life?

Mr. Huang shared that if he were a student, he would pay special attention to AI. In particular, learning how to interact with AI is most important in the art of asking the right questions and giving the right commands.

He also revealed that he uses AI tools for learning and working every day, from word processing and programming to analyzing new knowledge. Specifically, he uses the paid version of ChatGPT and considers it his "personal tutor." At the same time, he uses the search engine Perplexity AI to further his self-education in new academic fields.

Mr. Huang co-founded Nvidia in 1993 and has served as its CEO ever since. Under his leadership, Nvidia has transformed from a graphics chip manufacturer into a global leader in AI processor development.

In the current context, Huang is not the only tech billionaire actively discussing the skills young people need to possess.

The CEO of Meta Group, billionaire Mark Zuckerberg, once said that the most important thing for young people today is the ability to think critically and build a personal value system. Zuckerberg stated that he hires people based on their ability to delve deeply into and master a specific field.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/giao-duc/ty-phu-cong-nghe-jensen-huang-se-hoc-nganh-gi-neu-hoc-dai-hoc-luc-nay-20250721112848170.htm