Pathfinders: Golden Era of Compute & Systems

We’re entering the Golden Era of Compute & Systems  – At the recent Mayfield Pathfinders, we dove into what might be the most exciting moment in modern computing

Thanks to Amin Vahdat, Alexis Black Bjorlin, and Bratin Saha for kicking off the conversation

AI progress isn’t just about models anymore—it’s a race for compute, energy, and capital. We’re in the midst of a computing renaissance, transforming everything from chips and accelerators to interconnects, cooling, infrastructure and system software. The scale of this shift is even bigger than the leap to Internet-scale computing and presents a generational opportunity for founders and builders.

Drivers of the AI Infrastructure Revolution

• Multiple hardware S-Curves: Accelerators, GPUs, semiconductors
• Compounding Effects: Systems × software × models
• System Innovation: Silicon, interconnects, photonics, cooling, networking
• Bandwidth Surge: 10x connectivity needs; scale-up GPU switches
• Energy Costs: Power & cooling = 40–50%; usage may 4x by 2030
• Complexity: AI data centers 10x harder than traditional builds
• Tooling: Faster developer time-to-value

McKinsey (April ’25) projects $7T in data center infra by 2030 — with 70% ($5.2T) tied to AI: $3.1T → Chips & tech design (NVIDIA & beyond), $1.3T → Power, cooling, energy infra, $0.8T → Data center real estate & construction.