The Silicon Valley 'AI factory' at the heart of the tech race

The confusing question lingering over the AI hype is whether it could be a bubble at risk of bursting

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But it's a laboratory, hidden away at the back of the campus behind some trees, that he is most excited for me to see.

This is where the invention that Google believes is its secret weapon is being developed.

Known as a Tensor Processing Unit (or TPU), it looks like an unassuming little chip but, says Mr Pichai, it will one day power every AI query that goes through Google. This makes it potentially one of the most important objects in the world economy right now.

"AI is the most profound technology humanity [has ever worked] on," he insists. "It has potential for extraordinary benefits - we will have to work through societal disruptions."