Nvidia Corp yesterday unveiled its new high-speed interconnect technology, NVLink Fusion, with Taiwanese application-specific IC (ASIC) designers Alchip Technologies Ltd (世芯) and MediaTek Inc (聯發科) among the first to adopt the technology to help build semi-custom artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure for hyperscalers.
Nvidia has opened its technology to outside users, as hyperscalers and cloud service providers are building their own cost-effective AI chips, or accelerators, used in AI servers by leveraging ASIC firms’ designing capabilities to reduce their dependence on Nvidia.
Previously, NVLink technology was only available for Nvidia’s own AI platform.
Photo: I-Hwa Cheng, AFP
“NVLink Fusion opens Nvidia’s AI platform and rich ecosystem for partners to build specialized AI infrastructures,” Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) said in his keynote address at Computex in Taipei.
NVLink Fusion products give customers the option to use their own central processing units with Nvidia’s AI chips, or twin Nvidia silicon with another company’s AI accelerator.
The world’s major hyperscalers are already deploying Nvidia’s NVLink full-rack solutions and can speed time to availability by standardizing their heterogeneous silicon data centers on the Nvidia rack architecture with NVLink Fusion, Nvidia said in a statement.
“Our collaboration, which began in the automotive segment, now extends even further, enabling us to deliver scalable, efficient and flexible technologies that address the rapidly evolving needs of cloud-scale AI,” MediaTek vice chairman and CEO Rick Tsai (蔡力行) was quoted as saying in a statement by Nvidia.
Alchip CEO Johnny Shen (沈翔霖) said the company is supporting adoption of NVLink Fusion by broadening its availability through a design and manufacturing ecosystem, encompassing advanced processes and proven packaging and supported by the ASIC industry’s most flexible engagement.
Aside from Taiwanese chip companies, Qualcomm Inc, Fujitsu Ltd, Marvell Technology Inc, Astera Labs, Synopsys and Cadence are also among those first adopters of the technology to further open up access to its interconnect technology, Nvidia said.
Qualcomm yesterday said it is planning to launch custom CPUs for AI data centers that can connect with Nvidia’s GPUs.
Fujitsu Ltd also said its next-generation processor, FUJITSU-MONAKA, a 2-nanometer Arm-based CPU, can be combined with Nvidia’s full-stack AI infrastructure to deliver new levels of performance, the Nvidia statement said.
Nvidia also announced that it has picked Taipei to build its new Taiwan office, dubbed Nvidia Constellation, ending months of speculation.
“I’m very pleased to announce that Nvidia Constellation will be built in Beitou Shilin (北投士林),” Huang said. “We have negotiated the transfer of the lease from the current owners.”
As Nvidia’s partnerships with the Taiwanese ecosystem grow, the number of engineers at its Taiwan operations has been growing and it is building a brand new office to house its engineers, he said.
In addition, Huang announced a partnership between Nvidia, Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密), Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) and the National Science and Technology Council to build “the first giant AI supercomputer” for Taiwan.
It is crucial for Taiwan to have “world-class AI infrastructure” given the number of companies engaged in robotics and AI research here, Huang said, adding that the initiative would cater to Taiwan’s “AI infrastructure” and “AI ecosystem.”
The project will benefit researchers, students, start-ups and established companies alike, he added.
Additional reporting by CNA and Bloomberg
UKRAINE, NVIDIA: The US leader said the subject of Russia’s war had come up ‘very strongly,’ while Jenson Huang was hoping that the conversation was good Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump had differing takes following their meeting in Busan, South Korea, yesterday. Xi said that the two sides should complete follow-up work as soon as possible to deliver tangible results that would provide “peace of mind” to China, the US and the rest of the world, while Trump hailed the “great success” of the talks. The two discussed trade, including a deal to reduce tariffs slapped on China for its role in the fentanyl trade, as well as cooperation in ending the war in Ukraine, among other issues, but they did not mention
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi yesterday lavished US President Donald Trump with praise and vows of a “golden age” of ties on his visit to Tokyo, before inking a deal with Washington aimed at securing critical minerals. Takaichi — Japan’s first female prime minister — pulled out all the stops for Trump in her opening test on the international stage and even announced that she would nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize, the White House said. Trump has become increasingly focused on the Nobel since his return to power in January and claims to have ended several conflicts around the world,
GLOBAL PROJECT: Underseas cables ‘are the nervous system of democratic connectivity,’ which is under stress, Member of the European Parliament Rihards Kols said The government yesterday launched an initiative to promote global cooperation on improved security of undersea cables, following reported disruptions of such cables near Taiwan and around the world. The Management Initiative on International Undersea Cables aims to “bring together stakeholders, align standards, promote best practices and turn shared concerns into beneficial cooperation,” Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said at a seminar in Taipei. The project would be known as “RISK,” an acronym for risk mitigation, information sharing, systemic reform and knowledge building, he said at the seminar, titled “Taiwan-Europe Subsea Cable Security Cooperation Forum.” Taiwan sits at a vital junction on
LONG-HELD POSITION: Washington has repeatedly and clearly reiterated its support for Taiwan and its long-term policy, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio yesterday said that Taiwan should not be concerned about being used as a bargaining chip in the ongoing US-China trade talks. “I don’t think you’re going to see some trade deal where, if what people are worried about is, we’re going to get some trade deal or we’re going to get favorable treatment on trade in exchange for walking away from Taiwan,” Rubio told reporters aboard his airplane traveling between Israel and Qatar en route to Asia. “No one is contemplating that,” Reuters quoted Rubio as saying. A US Treasury spokesman yesterday told reporters
RSS