"My career began at the beginning of the personal computer revolution, and your career began at the beginning of the AI ​​revolution."On May 10, at the 128th graduation ceremony of Carnegie Mellon University, Huang Renxun told thousands of graduates in the audience that they happened to be standing on the starting line of a huge technological change.

"I can't imagine a more exciting time to start your life's work." In his view,Computing is undergoing a radical reset: from humans writing code to machines learning on their own. A new industry aimed at "manufacturing intelligence on a large scale" has been born.

Faced with the fear of whether AI will replace humans, he made a distinction: AI automates "tasks" rather than the "purpose" of work. Just like radiologists don’t just watch movies, they care about patients."It's unlikely that an AI will replace you, but someone who's better at using it than you might be," he warned.

He pushed this logic to the end: Do you want your children to use AI, or do you want to be left behind by those who have already used AI? The answer is self-evident.

He gave four things that must be done at the same time: safely advance the development of AI; establish thoughtful policies; make AI widely accessible; and encourage everyone to participate.

He also emphasized that AI is not only a tool for programmers, but will also create unprecedented opportunities for electricians, plumbers, steel workers and construction workers. This is an opportunity for the re-industrialization of the United States.Everyone, not just people who can program, should have AI.

Finally, he ended with Carnegie Mellon's school motto: "My heart is in the work." Then he said to the audience:We are all standing on the same starting line, "Run, don't walk slowly."

The following is the full text of Huang Renxun’s speech:

President Farnam Jahanian, fellow trustees, faculty and staff, distinguished guests, proud parents and families, and most importantly, the Carnegie Mellon University Class of 2026:

Thank you for this extraordinary honor. It means a lot to me to be able to come to Carnegie Mellon University, one of the top universities in the world and one of the few places that truly have the ability to create the future.

Today is a day of pride and joy, a moment when your dreams come true. But this isn't just your dream. Your family, teachers, mentors, and friends have all helped you get to where you are today. Before we talk about the future, let’s say thank you to them. Today also belongs to them. Graduates, please stand. Please stand with me. In particular, please turn to your mothers and wish them a Happy Mother's Day.

For you, this is an important step in your life; but for your mother, it is the realization of her dream. Please take a seat.

I noticed that Carnegie Mellon students were like robots, executing one instruction at a time. Seeing you graduate, okay, please focus. I have something important to share. Seeing your child graduate from one of the world's top universities is also a mother's moment. My parents are equally proud of me.My life journey is proof that their dreams come true. And their dream is the American dream.

Like many of you, I am a first-generation immigrant. My father's dream was to raise his family in America. When I was 9 years old, he sent my brother and me to the United States. We ended up at a Baptist boarding school in Oneita, Kentucky, a small town of a few hundred residents in the coal country.

Two years later, my parents dropped everything to join us. They arrived virtually penniless. My father was a chemical engineer and my mother worked as a janitor at a Catholic school. She woke me up at four in the morning to deliver newspapers. My brother helped me get a job as a dishwasher at Denny’s, which I viewed as a big career jump.

That is the America in my eyes, not easy but full of opportunities, not guaranteed but given opportunities. My parents came here because they believed America could give their children a chance. How can we not harbor a romantic imagination about America?

Later, I attended Oregon State University. When I was 17, I met my wife, Lori. I am the youngest student in the school. We became lab partners during our sophomore year. She is 19 years old and an "older woman." I beat 250 other boys in my class to win her heart. So far, we have been together for 40 years. We have two wonderful children, both working at NVIDIA.

When I was 30 years old, I co-founded NVIDIA with two brilliant computer scientists, Chris Malachowsky and Curtis Priem.We wanted to build a completely new kind of computer, a machine that could solve problems that ordinary computers couldn't.

At the time, we had no idea how to start a company, raise capital, or run a business. I just thought, how hard can this be? It turned out to be incredibly difficult. Our first technology didn't work at all. The company almost ran out of money. At one point, I had to fly to Japan to explain to Shoichiro Irimajiri, Sega's then-CEO, that the technology they had contracted us to develop couldn't be implemented.

I asked to be released from a contract we couldn't fulfill and then implored them to still pay us. Without that funding, Nvidia would cease to exist. It was one of the most embarrassing, frustrating and difficult moments of my career. Mr. Shoichiro agreed to my request.

I learned early on that being a CEO is not about power, but about the responsibility to keep the company alive, and the honesty and humility that can lead to generosity and kindness even in the business world. We used that money to reorient the company, and in the midst of desperation invented new ways of designing chips and computers that we still use today.

Over the past 33 years, NVIDIA has completed self-innovation time and time again. Each time, we asked, “How hard could this be?” And each time, we learned: It’s much harder than we thought. But it is through these experiences that we learn to never view failure as the opposite of success. Every failure is just a learning opportunity, a humbling moment, and a character-building process. Resilience forged in setbacks gives you the strength to move forward again.

Today, I am one of the longest-serving CEOs in the technology industry. NVIDIA, a business I built with 45,000 outstanding colleagues, is my life's work.

Now, it's your turn to realize your dreams. And the timing couldn't be better. My career began at the beginning of the personal computer revolution. Your career began at the beginning of the AI ​​revolution. I can't imagine a more exciting time to begin your life's work.

AI is originating from Carnegie Mellon University. Over the past 24 hours, I’ve heard countless jokes about AI at Carnegie Mellon. Carnegie Mellon University is one of the true birthplaces of AI and robotics. In the 1950s, researchers here created "Logic Theorist," widely regarded as the first AI computer program. In 1979, Carnegie Mellon University established the Robotics Institute. This morning I visited the Robotics Club, the first academic institution dedicated entirely to robotics. Today, AI has completely reshaped computing.

I've experienced every major computing platform evolution: mainframe, PC, Internet, mobile, and cloud. Each wave builds on the previous one, each expands the accessibility of technology, and each profoundly changes industry and society. But what is about to happen now is far more important than anything before. Computing is undergoing a radical reset. This is almost the first time since the birth of modern computing.

For sixty years, computing has worked the same way: humans write the software, and computers execute the instructions. This paradigm is over. AI revolutionizes computing: from human coding to machine learning; from running software on CPUs to training neural networks on GPUs; from following instructions to understanding, reasoning, planning, and using tools. A new industry has emerged aimed at manufacturing intelligence at scale. Because intelligence is the foundation of every industry, every industry will change.

For many people, AI creates uncertainty. When people see AI writing software, generating images, and driving cars, they naturally ask: What will happen next? Will jobs disappear? Will people be left behind? Will this technology become too powerful? Every major technological revolution in history has brought opportunities but also triggered fears.When society embraces technology with openness, responsibility, and optimism, we can expand human potential far more than we can reduce.

So, first and foremost, we must keep our heads above water. AI, or automation of understanding, reasoning, and problem solving, is one of the most powerful technologies humans have ever created. Like every transformative technology before it, it will bring great promise, but also real risks.

The responsibility of our generation is not just to advance AI, but to advance it wisely. Scientists and engineers have a huge responsibility to advance both AI capabilities and AI safety. Policymakers have a responsibility to develop thoughtful protective measures to protect society while leaving room for innovation, discovery and progress.History shows that societies that shy away from technology do not prevent progress; they simply pass up the opportunity to shape it and benefit from it.

So, the answer is not to fear the future. The answer is to steer the future wisely, build it responsibly and ensure it benefits as many people as possible.We should not teach fear of the future. We should embrace it with optimism, responsibility and ambition.

In the past, only a small percentage of the world's population knew how to write software. Now, anyone can build something useful with the help of AI. Store owners can create websites to expand their business; carpenters can design kitchens to provide new services to customers; AI can write code.Nowadays, everyone is a programmer. For the first time, the power of computing and intelligence can truly reach everyone and bridge the technological gap.

Like electricity and the Internet before it, AI will require trillions of dollars in infrastructure investment. This is the largest technological infrastructure construction in human history, and it is also a once-in-a-generation opportunity: to reindustrialize the United States and restore the country's ability to build. To support the operation of AI, the United States will build chip factories, computer factories, data centers and advanced manufacturing facilities across the country. AI gives America a chance to build again. Electricians, plumbers, steelworkers, technicians, construction workers, this is your time.

AI has not only created a new computing industry, it is giving birth to a new industrial era. Powering this new infrastructure will require enormous amounts of energy. But it is also driving one of the largest investments in energy infrastructure in generations: modernizing the grid, expanding generation capacity, and accelerating the development of sustainable energy.

Yes, AI will change every job. But the tasks and purposes of work are not the same. Many tasks will be automated and some jobs will disappear, but a large number of new jobs and entirely new industries will be created. Software coding tasks are becoming increasingly automated, but with the help of AI, software engineers can expand the boundaries of exploring solutions and tackle more ambitious challenges. The analysis of radiology images is becoming increasingly automated, but with the help of AI, radiologists are empowered to better diagnose diseases and care for patients.

AI does not replace human goals, it amplifies human capabilities. Because of this, even as AI writes more code and analyzes more scans, demand for software engineers and radiologists continues to grow.

An AI is unlikely to replace you, but someone who is better at using it than you might. So a good thought experiment is: Do we want our children to be empowered by AI, or do we want our children to be left behind by those who are already empowered? No parent wants their children to fall behind. So, let's build AI safely. At the same time, let us imagine an optimistic future, one that our children are happy to be a part of and motivated to help build.

Therefore, we can and must do four things simultaneously: advance AI development safely; establish thoughtful policies; make AI broadly accessible; and encourage everyone to participate.Everyone should have AI. Opportunities should not be limited to those who can program.

Class of 2026, you are entering an extraordinary moment. A new industry is being born. A new era of scientific discovery is beginning. AI will accelerate the expansion of human knowledge and help solve problems that were once beyond our capabilities. We have an opportunity to bridge the technology divide and bring the power of computing and intelligence to billions of people for the first time; to reindustrialize America and restore our ability to build; and to help create a future that is more prosperous, capable, and hopeful than the world you inherited.

No generation has entered this world with more powerful tools or greater opportunities than yours. We are all on the same starting line. This is your moment to help shape the future. So, run, don’t walk!

Carnegie Mellon University has a motto that I love: "My heart is in my work." So put your whole heart and soul into your work. To create something that matches your education, your potential, and the sacrifice of those who believed in you before the world recognized you.

Congratulations to you, Carnegie Mellon University Class of 2026.