By Walter Denmon

1. Different Origins, Same Battlefield

Cisco and Nvidia started in very different worlds:
• Cisco (founded 1984) built its dominance on networking hardware — routers, switches, and the infrastructure that moves data across the internet.
• Nvidia (founded 1993) focused on graphics processing units (GPUs), later redefining itself as a leader in parallel computing and AI acceleration.

For years, the two companies barely competed. But as data centers, cloud computing, and AI workloads exploded, their paths collided. 2. The First Friction: Data Center Control (2000s–2010s)

As enterprises moved workloads into data centers:
• Cisco pushed deeper into servers and unified computing (UCS)
• Nvidia expanded GPUs beyond graphics into general-purpose computing

The clash emerged around who controls data center architecture:
• Cisco emphasized network-centric design
• Nvidia promoted compute- and accelerator-centric design

This tension became more pronounced as high-performance computing (HPC) and AI workloads demanded low-latency, high-bandwidth networking tightly integrated with GPUs.

3. InfiniBand vs. Ethernet: The Core Technical Battle

The most direct clash centers on networking technology:
Nvidia’s approach
• Acquired Mellanox in 2020
• Pushed InfiniBand, a high-speed, low-latency networking standard
• Optimized for AI training, supercomputers, and hyperscale data centers

Cisco’s approach
• Defended Ethernet-based networking
• Promoted open standards and software-defined networking
• Argued Ethernet could scale to meet AI demands without proprietary lock-in

? Key tension:
• Nvidia favors tight integration of GPUs + InfiniBand + software stack
• Cisco favors open, modular, Ethernet-based networks
This became a philosophical and commercial clash over openness vs. vertical integration.

4. AI Changes Everything (Late 2010s–2020s)

With the AI boom:
• Nvidia emerged as the dominant AI hardware and platform company
• Networking became a critical bottleneck for AI clusters
• Nvidia positioned itself not just as a chip company, but as a full data center platform provider

Nvidia began offering:
• GPUs
• Networking (InfiniBand & Ethernet)
• DPUs (data processing units)
• AI software frameworks

This directly encroached on Cisco’s traditional territory. Cisco, in response:
• Emphasized AI-ready Ethernet
• Invested heavily in Silicon One, its own networking silicon
• Positioned itself as the neutral infrastructure layer beneath AI systems

5. The Competitive Undercurrent: Who Owns the AI Data Center?
At the heart of the clash is control:
• Nvidia’s vision:
A vertically integrated AI stack — hardware, networking, and software optimized together.

• Cisco’s vision:
A heterogeneous, vendor-neutral network where AI systems plug in without lock-in.

This rivalry matters because:
• AI data centers are among the most expensive and strategic infrastructure investments
• Whoever controls networking standards influences long-term customer dependency

6. Not Just Rivals — Sometimes Partners
Despite competition, Cisco and Nvidia sometimes collaborate:
• Nvidia GPUs run over Ethernet networks
• Cisco gear is used in data centers that deploy Nvidia accelerators

This makes the relationship competitive but interdependent, common in modern tech ecosystems.

7. Where Things Stand Today

By the mid-2020s:
• Nvidia dominates AI compute and high-performance networking
• Cisco remains a giant in enterprise and internet-scale networking
• The clash has shifted from products to architectural control of AI infrastructure

Unlike classic tech wars, this is not a courtroom battle — it’s a slow, structural competition shaping how the internet and AI are built.

In Summary

The Cisco–Nvidia clash unfolded as:
• A technical battle: Ethernet vs. InfiniBand
• A strategic battle: Open networking vs. vertically integrated AI platforms
• A market battle: Who defines the future of AI data centers

Cisco defends the network.
Nvidia redefines the data center around AI.

Both are winning — but in very different ways.

By April Lanux

Silver and platinum plunged, extending a recent run of exceptional volatility as traders weighed index rebalancing sales, supply constraints and the risk of potential US tariffs. Gold also declined.

Spot platinum slid as much as 7.7% and silver tumbled as much as 6%, though both metals are still up for the month so far. Silver had powered to a record high above $84 an ounce in late December as strong retail investor appetite, particularly in China, buffeted prices in thin trading over the holiday period.

Gold and palladium also fell alongside their precious metal peers ahead of an annual rebalancing of broad commodity indexes, which sometimes are a drag on prices because passive tracking funds sell commodities that have rallied heavily to match new weightings.

“We expect large-scale selling activity to kick off amid significant rebalancing flows from broad commodity indices,” TD Securities strategist Daniel Ghali wrote in a note, adding that silver had seen a “devilish blow-off top.”

Citigroup Inc. has estimated outflows of $6.8 billion from gold futures contracts and roughly the same amount from silver because of reweighting of the two largest commodity indexes that’s set to start this week.

Both metals faced a similar index selloff last year, without causing a discernible drag on the market, according to a Dec. 12 note from JPMorgan Chase & Co. The bank, however, said the amount of selling required in silver is more outsized this year.

In the London market, the dominant spot-trading hub, silver and platinum supplies have been tight following shipments to the US last year spurred by tariff fears. Borrowing costs for the metals eased somewhat this week, but still remain historically elevated as inventories remain locked in US warehouses.

Traders are awaiting the outcome of Washington’s Section 232 probe into imports of critical minerals that could lead to levies or trade restrictions.

“You now have a lack of liquidity that means that anyone who wants to come into the market really has to pay up for that,” Michael Widmer, head of metals research at Bank of America Corp., told Bloomberg Television. While there’s a positive fundamental demand outlook for silver, which has many industrial applications, speculators have brought excessive volatility into the market, he said.

Traders also are keeping an eye on geopolitical tensions that may bolster haven demand. Days after the seizure of Venezuela’s president, the White House refused to rule out military force to acquire Greenland. China, meanwhile, imposed controls on exports to Japan with any military use.

While the geopolitical landscape remains fragile, traders are turning their attention to a busy lineup of US economic data, including the December jobs report due Friday. November’s report showed job openings fell to a more than one-year low and hiring slowed, bolstering hopes for more interest rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve amid signs of a softening labor market.

Adding to these expectations, Fed Governor Stephen Miran said the central bank would need to cut rates by more than a percentage point in 2026, telling Fox Business Network that monetary policy is restraining the economy. Three successive rate cuts in 2026 were a tailwind for precious metals, which don’t pay interest.

Gold is fresh from posting its best annual performance since 1979, hitting a series of record highs last year with support from central-bank buying and inflows to bullion-backed exchange-traded funds. Silver’s rally was even more spectacular, with prices surging nearly 150% as the metal benefited from the supply tightness and the possibility of tariffs.

Spot silver dropped 3.7% to $78.2564 an ounce as of 4:03 p.m. in New York. Spot gold was down 0.9% at $4,453.98 an ounce. Platinum slid 5.8% to $2,303.73 an ounce, while palladium lost 3.5%. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was up 0.1%.