One of the dominant forces in PC gaming is getting recognition as a global business powerhouse.
Nvidia chief executive officer Jen-Hsun Huang is the No. 6 best-performing CEO in the world, according to the latest rankings from Harvard Business Review. The publication notes that this list is about revealing the corporate leaders that are best at delivering reliable long-term performance. Huang cofounded Nvidia in 1993, and he has overseen its growth into the market leader for PC graphics while simultaneously expanding into new sectors like self-driving cars, consumer electronics, and deep-learning cloud computing.
Huang is the top-ranked CEO of a gaming-focused company on the HBR list. Activision chief executive Bobby Kotick comes in at No. 75. EA CEO Andrew Wilson and Ubisoft boss Yves Guillemot both did not make the list. Instead, giant corporations that have a minor stake in gaming saw some representation. Tencent chief Huateng “Pony” Ma, Softbank boss Masayoshi Son, and Amazon CEO Jeffrey Bezos made the list at No. 45, No. 73, and No. 76, respectively.
But when it comes to games, this list belongs to Nvidia and Huang. The company generated $1.43 billion during the second quarter of its fiscal 2017 ending July 31. That was up 24 percent year-over-year, and the company has seen similar growth for years. Most of those sales come from its consumer graphics cards — especially now that Nvidia has debuted its advanced line of Pascal cards featuring a new 14nm process design.
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And while PC video cards will continue to power Nvidia revenues, the company is using its silicon to diversify its business going forward.
“Our strategy is to focus on creating the future where graphics, computer vision, and artificial intelligence converge is fueling growth across our specialized platforms of gaming, pro visualization, datacenters, and Automotive,” Huang said in a statement alongside Nvidia’s earnings statement in July.
It’s that combination of short-term year-over-year growth combined with a bold vision for the future that is maintaining Nvidia’s momentum, and it’s why the Harvard Business Review loves Huang.
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