This 2020 Nvidia chip is still going strong. That matters for the AI boom.

CoreWeave, an AI cloud company, has signed a contract to lease Nvidia A100 GPUs until 2029, challenging concerns about the rapid obsolescence of AI hardware. This deal suggests that older Nvidia GPUs remain valuable, contrary to the belief that they quickly become obsolete. The AI cloud company's move indicates that AI chips can stay useful and generate revenue for extended periods, contrary to previous claims.

Nvidia's A100 GPUs were introduced in 2020, and the contract signifies customers' commitment to use these chips for about nine years after their launch. CoreWeave's CFO, Nitin Agrawal, stated that the company recently signed an A100 contract that extends into 2029 at an attractive price and is also largely sold out of older generations of Nvidia chips.

Evidence has increasingly shown that useful GPU lives may be longer than previously feared. GPU rental-market data supports CoreWeave's assertion, showing that A100 rental rates have held up well after a strong rebound in 2026. GPUs can remain useful for various computing tasks, even after being used for building advanced AI models, as they can be repurposed for less demanding jobs.

The useful life of GPUs is extended by warranty contracts, which typically last five years, ensuring that if GPUs fail, they are replaced with new ones, prolonging the overall GPU fleet's life. The concern about GPUs' useful lives has become more critical as Wall Street invests heavily in AI infrastructure. Nvidia recently announced partnerships with several companies, mobilizing over $500 billion, which depends on AI hardware retaining its value for years.

The fact that an A100 is still attracting customers into 2029 is a powerful test of this assumption, and so far, it has yielded encouraging results.