Tag Archives: Q4 2024

Gaming still at the back seat of Nvidia Q4 2024 performance

Nvidia, the AI chip giant, recently released its fiscal fourth-quarter earnings report, which has garnered significant attention from investors and tech enthusiasts alike. The company reported a record quarterly revenue of $39.3 billion, up 12% from the previous quarter and 78% from a year ago. This impressive growth is largely attributed to the booming demand for AI and data center products.

Key Highlights from the Earnings Report

  1. Revenue and Earnings: Nvidia’s revenue for the fourth quarter was $39.3 billion, surpassing analysts’ expectations of $38.05 billion. The company’s net income rose to $22.09 billion, or 89 cents per diluted share, compared to $12.29 billion, or 49 cents per share, in the same period last year.
  2. AI Demand: The demand for AI inference and new AI models has significantly benefited Nvidia. CEO Jensen Huang highlighted that the company’s leadership in advanced AI chips has enabled them to unlock new use-cases and drive strong demand.
  3. Blackwell AI Chips: Nvidia’s next-generation AI chip, Blackwell, has seen a significant ramp-up in sales, contributing to the company’s strong performance. CFO Colette Kress mentioned that the company expects gross margins to reach the mid-70s later this year once Blackwell production has fully ramped up.
  4. Market Reaction: Despite the impressive earnings report, Nvidia’s stock experienced a slight decline in after-hours trading. Analysts suggest that the market’s tame response may indicate that all the good news has already been priced into the stock.

The RTX 50 series, powered by Nvidia’s Blackwell architecture, has been a game-changer for gamers and creators. The series includes the RTX 5090, 5080, 5070 Ti, and 5070, each offering significant performance improvements over their predecessors.

  1. Performance Uplift: The RTX 5090 demonstrates a 33% performance increase over the RTX 4090 in games like Resident Evil 4 and Horizon Forbidden West. Similarly, the RTX 5080 shows a 15% improvement, while the RTX 5070 Ti and 5070 are approximately 20% faster than their Ada Lovelace predecessors.
  2. AI and Ray Tracing: The RTX 50 series leverages AI and ray tracing technologies to deliver superior graphics fidelity and performance. The inclusion of DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation and enhanced Ray Reconstruction has further boosted the performance of these GPUs.
  3. Market Reception: The RTX 50 series has received positive feedback from both gamers and creators. The GPUs’ ability to handle demanding tasks and deliver high-quality visuals has made them a popular choice among users.

Management’s Reaction to Recent RTX 50 News

Nvidia’s management has been actively addressing the recent issues and controversies surrounding the RTX 50 series. The company has acknowledged the concerns raised by users and is working diligently to resolve them.

  1. ROP Controversy: Nvidia’s global PR director, Ben Berraondo, confirmed that the missing Render Output Pipelines (ROPs) issue affects only about 0.5% of all GeForce RTX 5090/5090D and RTX 5070 Ti graphics cards. The company is investigating the matter and has assured users that they are committed to providing a solution.
  2. BSOD and Black Screen Troubles: Nvidia has confirmed that it is investigating the blue screen of death (BSOD) and black screen issues reported by users of the RTX 50 series. The company is working on identifying the root cause and determining whether the fix will come through a driver update or a VBIOS update.

WB Games cuts internal studio as response of Warner Bros. Discovery Q4 2024 performance

WarnerMedia, now part of Warner Bros. Discovery, recently released its earnings report for the fourth quarter of 2024. The report highlighted both achievements and challenges faced by the media giant. While the company saw growth in some areas, it also had to make tough decisions, particularly within its gaming division.

Warner Bros. Discovery reported a fiscal fourth-quarter revenue of $10.03 billion, a slight decline of 1% year-over-year. The company’s net loss widened to $494 million from $400 million the previous year. Despite these setbacks, the company’s studios segment saw a 16% increase in revenue, reaching $3.66 billion. This growth was driven by an increase in TV revenue, although it was offset by declines in theatrical and games revenue.

The direct-to-consumer (DTC) segment also showed positive results, with total DTC subscribers increasing to 116.9 million from 110.5 million a year ago. The company aims to reach 150 million subscribers by 2026.

WB Games: Studio Closures and Cancellations

One of the most significant and unfortunate developments in the earnings report was the announcement of multiple studio closures within WB Games. The company decided to shut down three studios: Monolith Productions, Player First Games, and WB San Diego. This decision was part of a strategic shift to focus on fewer but bigger franchises, such as Harry Potter, Mortal Kombat, DC, and Game of Thrones.

Monolith Productions, known for its critically acclaimed Middle-earth series, was working on a highly anticipated Wonder Woman game. Unfortunately, the game has been canceled as part of the studio’s closure. The Wonder Woman game was expected to be an open-world action-adventure title featuring the iconic DC character, but it faced numerous development challenges and was still years away from release.

Player First Games, the studio behind the platform fighter MultiVersus, and WB San Diego, which focused on mobile games, were also affected by the closures. The decision to shut down these studios was not a reflection of the talent within them but rather a strategic move to allocate resources more effectively.

Impact on the Gaming Industry

The closure of these studios and the cancellation of the Wonder Woman game have sent shockwaves through the gaming industry. Monolith Productions, in particular, had a storied history of delivering high-quality games, and its closure marks the end of an era. The decision to focus on fewer but bigger franchises may help Warner Bros. Discovery streamline its operations and improve profitability, but it also means that fans will miss out on potentially groundbreaking games.

Warner Bros. Discovery’s earnings report underscores the challenges and opportunities facing the company. While the financial performance showed some positive trends, the tough decisions within WB Games highlight the difficulties of navigating the competitive gaming industry. As the company moves forward, it will need to balance its strategic priorities with the expectations of its fans and stakeholders.

AMD closes the year 2024 in green and with official release of RDNA4

AMD reported record revenue of $7.7 billion for Q4 2024, which was a 24% increase year-over-year. The company also achieved a gross margin of 51% and a non-GAAP gross margin of 54%. For the full year 2024, AMD reported record revenue of $25.8 billion, a 14% increase from the previous year. The company’s operating income for the year was $1.9 billion, and net income was $1.6 billion.

AMD’s CEO, Dr. Lisa Su, highlighted that 2024 was a transformative year for the company, with significant growth in their Data Center segment and strong earnings expansion.

The company also saw record revenue from its AMD Instinct accelerator products.

Of course RDNA4 and the Radeon RX 9070 XT family topic could not be avoided on the conference call with AMD’s inverstor.

And with this, Lisa Su confirmed the launch of their next-generation RDNA 4 architecture and the Radeon RX 9070 XT graphics card. Scheduled for release on March 6, 2025, these GPUs are set to revolutionize the mainstream and mid-range gaming market.

A review of all that is currently public knowledge…

RDNA 4 marks a significant leap forward for AMD, focusing on improved ray tracing performance and AI-powered upscaling technology. The architecture will utilize a 4nm TSMC process node, enhancing density and efficiency3. Key features include:

  • Optimized Compute Units (CUs): RDNA 4 introduces optimized CUs for better performance.
  • Supercharged AI Compute: Enhanced AI capabilities for advanced upscaling and image stabilization.
  • Improved Ray Tracing: Significantly better ray tracing performance compared to previous generations.
  • Better Media Encoding: Enhanced media encoding quality for a smoother gaming experience.

Radeon RX 9070 XT: Specifications and Performance

The Radeon RX 9070 XT is AMD’s flagship offering in the RDNA 4 lineup. Here are the key specifications:

  • Stream Processors: 4,096 SPs
  • Compute Units: 64 CUs
  • Memory: 16GB GDDR6 with a 256-bit memory bus
  • Memory Speed: 20 Gbps
  • Bandwidth: 640 GB/s
  • Base / Boost Clocks: 2.40 GHz / 2.97 GHz
  • PCIe Support: PCIe 5.0

The RX 9070 XT is designed to compete with NVIDIA’s GeForce RTX 5070 Ti, offering top-tier performance at a more affordable price. AMD’s focus on mainstream gaming means the RX 9070 XT aims to provide high-quality 4K gaming experiences with improved ray tracing and AI-powered upscaling.