Jensen Huang and the Gardener of Ginkaku-ji:
NVIDIA Was Not Built Overnight
NVIDIA is not a house of cards built overnight. Founded in 1993, the company has grown into a global leader in the GPU industry under the unwavering leadership of its founder and CEO, Jensen Huang. For 31 years, Huang has dedicated his life to advancing computing technology, transforming NVIDIA from a graphics card company into a dominant force in AI, gaming, and deep learning.
In June 2024, Huang delivered a commencement speech at Caltech, one of the world's premier engineering institutions, where he shared his profound insights on technology and innovation. The speech resonated deeply with the audience, especially when he spoke about NVIDIA’s CUDA ecosystem—a revolutionary software platform for parallel computing that has grown to rival Apple’s App Store in scale and influence.
The Gardener of Ginkaku-ji
At the end of his speech, Huang shared a personal story that left a lasting impact. He recalled how he spent a month every summer working overseas, and during one such period, when his children were young, he spent time in Japan. One day, while visiting the Ginkaku-ji (Silver Pavilion) in Kyoto, he witnessed something extraordinary: a gardener meticulously weeding the vast moss garden using only a pair of tweezers, working under the sweltering summer heat.
Intrigued, Huang approached the gardener and asked, "Isn’t this too vast a task to complete by hand?"
The gardener, without hesitation, replied, "I have been tending to this garden for 25 years. There is no need to rush. There is plenty of time."
These words struck a deep chord in Huang. He reflected on the struggles and hardships NVIDIA had faced over the years, realizing that the gardener's wisdom applied not only to tending a garden but also to building something great. True success does not come quickly. It is achieved through patience, consistency, and the quiet, deliberate progress of taking one step at a time.
A Lesson in Perseverance
Huang’s story is a powerful metaphor for perseverance in both business and life. It serves as a reminder that great achievements—whether in technology, innovation, or personal growth—are not the result of short bursts of effort but of sustained, dedicated work over decades.
The journey of NVIDIA has been marked by relentless pursuit, adaptation, and resilience. Just as the gardener patiently tended to each blade of moss, Huang nurtured NVIDIA through cycles of technological breakthroughs and industry challenges, never rushing, always moving forward.
His message resonated with graduates and professionals alike: find your craft, commit to it, and trust in the process. Success is not about speed but about unwavering persistence. This philosophy continues to inspire countless individuals, ensuring that Huang’s legacy, much like the well-tended garden of Ginkaku-ji, will flourish for generations to come.
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