Jensen Huang: “Everything Will Be Expressed as a Virtual Twin” — NVIDIA-Dassault, Largest Partnership in 25 Years of Collaboration

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Jensen Huang: “Everything will be expressed in Virtual Twin” — NVIDIA-Dassault, Largest Partnership in 25 Years of Collaboration

  • NVIDIA and Dassault Systèmes Announce Largest Strategic Partnership in 25 Years of Collaboration
  • Aim to Expand Design and Manufacturing Processes by 100-1000x Through Physics-Based AI and Virtual Twin
  • Building AI Factories on 3 Continents, Providing Industrial AI to 45 Million Users

What Happened?

NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang and Dassault Systèmes CEO Pascal Daloz announced their largest partnership ever at 3DEXPERIENCE World in Houston on February 3, 2026.[NVIDIA Blog] The two companies have been collaborating for over 25 years, but this announcement signifies the full integration of NVIDIA’s accelerated computing and AI libraries with Dassault’s Virtual Twin platform. This is the first case of convergence.

Huang said, “AI will become infrastructure like water, electricity, and the internet,” and “Engineers will be able to work at a scale 100x, 1000x, and ultimately 1 million times larger.”[NVIDIA Blog] He added that engineers will have an AI partner team.

The core of this partnership is Industry World Models. AI systems validated by the laws of physics simulate products, factories, and even biological systems before they are actually built. NVIDIA Omniverse libraries and Nemotron open models are integrated into Dassault’s 3DEXPERIENCE platform, enabling an AI agent called Virtual Companion to support design in real-time.[Dassault Systèmes]

Why is it Important?

Frankly, this is not just a partnership announcement. It’s a move that could change the landscape of Industrial AI.

Virtual Twin is a more advanced concept than the traditional Digital Twin. While Digital Twin is a static 3D replica, Virtual Twin simulates real-time behavior and evolution. This means you can design not only the geometric shape of a product but also how it works simultaneously.

Personally, I think the real significance of this partnership lies in the concept of “AI Partner.” Instead of an engineer running CAD alone, AI simulates and suggests thousands of design options in real-time. It allows you to explore a much wider design space in the early stages of design.

Similar attempts have already been made. Siemens and NVIDIA also announced the Industrial AI Operating System at CES 2026, improving throughput by 20% at a PepsiCo factory through AI Digital Twin. Dassault has a huge installed base of 45 million users and 400,000 customers. Integrating NVIDIA AI into a platform of this scale has a different impact.

What’s Next?

Dassault’s OUTSCALE brand is building AI factories on 3 continents. It is a structure that operates Industrial AI models while ensuring data sovereignty and privacy.

However, the extent to which this will actually be realized remains to be seen. “1 Million Times Expansion” is a vision, not an immediate reality. The important thing is whether existing 3DEXPERIENCE users can use this feature at no additional cost, or whether a new license is required. Pricing policies have not yet been announced.

The theme of the 3DEXPERIENCE User Conference in Boston in March 2026 is “AI-Powered Virtual Twin Experiences.”[Dassault Systèmes] A more detailed roadmap is expected to be released then.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q: What is the difference between Virtual Twin and Digital Twin?

A: Digital Twin is a static 3D copy of a physical product. It is a replica. Virtual Twin includes real-time behavior simulation and evolution over time. It can simulate and predict not only the shape of the product but also how it works and its entire life cycle, allowing for additional optimization during the design phase.

Q: How will this partnership affect existing 3DEXPERIENCE users?

A: With NVIDIA’s AI libraries and Nemotron models integrated into the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, users can receive real-time design support from AI Companion. However, specific pricing policies or compatibility with existing licenses have not yet been announced, so more information is expected to be released at the March user conference.

Q: Didn’t NVIDIA announce a similar partnership with Siemens?

A: That’s right. NVIDIA announced an Industrial AI Operating System partnership with Siemens at CES 2026. Siemens has strengths in manufacturing automation and factory systems, while Dassault has strengths in product design and PLM. From NVIDIA’s perspective, both partnerships are strategies to expand the Omniverse ecosystem and are complementary rather than competitive.

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References

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