Andreessen Horowitz has established a new fund with a scale of $1.1 billion, named “Machine Age”. This venture capital firm stated that the new fund will focus its investments on the physical infrastructure of AI in order to accelerate the construction of related production capacity and systems.

Investment focus shifts towards hardware

Different from the more common software investment paths in the past for a16z, this fund is clearly betting on hardware. According to the information published on its official website, the fund will focus on the entire set of underlying infrastructure that supports the operation of AI , rather than just model or application layer companies.

The coverage includes fields such as computing chips, memory, data centers, and robots. a16z believes that as the scale of the AI system continues to expand, the industry's requirements for computing power, bandwidth, energy consumption, and deployment efficiency are also increasing accordingly.

Aiming at the bottlenecks in computing power and infrastructure

As mentioned in a16z, the current industry still requires faster and more efficient systems, as well as cheaper storage solutions with higher bandwidth. In addition to chips and memory, the interconnection capabilities between nodes and between systems are also considered a key aspect in the AI expansion process.

The institution also mentioned that low-power AI devices for the edge side are equally important. These devices are used to enable AI to explore, perceive, and interact in real-world environments, with application scenarios covering terminal devices and robotic systems.

Data center supporting facilities are also within the scope of investment.

In addition to the core computing components, the fund will also focus on the supporting aspects necessary for the implementation of the AI infrastructure, including cooling systems, materials, power supply systems, and real estate construction. The stance of a16z indicates that their assessment is not limited to the chip itself, but rather regards the expansion of AI as a systematic project involving the supply chain and physical construction.

This means that the focus of investment around AI continues to shift towards infrastructure sectors that involve heavier assets. As the demand for model training and inference grows, more funds are flowing into the areas of hardware and facilities that can directly support the deployment of computing power.