AI Infrastructure

AI Infrastructure Op-ed

The Age of Distributed Energy: Power to the People (and the AI)

• 

Richard Banfield• November 14, 2024 • 4 min read

The dawn of a world where power is democratized, resilience is the rule, and energy isn’t something you’re given, but something you make. Is this a smart, savvy, power-to-the-people world?

AI Infrastructure Meta Amazon AI Policy

Amazon and Meta's Nuclear Energy Dreams for Data Centers Hit Regulatory Roadblocks

• 

Chris McKay• November 4, 2024 • 3 min read

While Amazon's nuclear power ambitions were blocked by federal regulators concerned about grid reliability and consumer costs, Meta's plans were thwarted by environmental hurdles, including the discovery of a protected bee species on their proposed data center site.

AI Infrastructure

Antares Raises $30M Series A to Build Small Nuclear Microreactors

• 

Chris McKay• October 30, 2024 • 2 min read

These smaller reactors are designed to power critical infrastructure in remote locations, from military installations to space missions.

xAI AI Infrastructure

Inside Elon Musk's Colossus: xAI's World-Leading AI Supercomputer

• 

Chris McKay• October 29, 2024 • 3 min read

ServeTheHome got exclusive access to film the Colossus facility, providing a rare inside look at the world's largest AI supercomputer.

Venture Capital Startups AI Infrastructure

Lightmatter Secures $400M, Valuation Soars to $4.4B as AI Fuels Demand for Photonic Computing

• 

Chris McKay• October 16, 2024 • 2 min read

The investment, led by T. Rowe Price Associates with participation from existing backers Fidelity Management & Research Company and GV (formerly Google Ventures), brings Lightmatter's total funding to $850 million.

Amazon AI Infrastructure

Amazon to Invest $500 million in Nuclear Power to Meet Soaring AI Energy Needs

• 

Chris McKay• October 16, 2024 • 3 min read

AWS will partner with X-Energy and the Washington-based nuclear operator Energy Northwest to deploy a planned fleet of nuclear reactors with a total capacity of 5 gigawatts (GW) by 2040.

Google AI Infrastructure

Google Signs Landmark Deal to Access Kairos' Nuclear Tech to Drive AI Ambitions

• 

Chris McKay• October 14, 2024 • 3 min read

Under the agreement, Kairos will develop, build, and operate the reactors, selling power directly to Google through Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs).

Venture Capital Startups AI Infrastructure

CoreWeave Secures $650 Million Credit Facility to Fuel AI Cloud Expansion

• 

Chris McKay• October 11, 2024 • 1 min read

The new credit line will help CoreWeave expand its data center portfolio, which already includes 28 locations planned by the end of 2024, with 10 more expected to be added in 2025.

Microsoft AI Infrastructure

Three Mile Island Nuclear Plant to Reopen, Powering Microsoft Data Centers

• 

Chris McKay• September 20, 2024 • 2 min read

Microsoft has committed to a 20-year power purchase agreement, securing all of the plant's output to fuel its expanding data center operations across the Midwest and East Coast.

Microsoft AI Infrastructure

BlackRock, Microsoft, and Partners Launch $100 Billion AI Infrastructure Initiative

• 

Chris McKay• September 17, 2024 • 2 min read

The partnership will focus on expanding and creating new data centers to meet the growing demand for computing power needed to drive AI innovation. Additionally, GAIIP will invest in energy infrastructure to power these facilities.

Chips AI Infrastructure

Cerebras Launches Game-Changing AI Inference Service

• 

Chris McKay• August 27, 2024 • 2 min read

Their service can process Llama 3.1 8B at 1,800 tokens per second and Llama 3.1 70B at 450 tokens per second.

OpenAI Chips AI Infrastructure

OpenAI in Talks With Broadcom to Develop New AI Chip

• 

Chris McKay• July 18, 2024 • 1 min read

While creating a new chip is no easy feat, the potential payoff is significant. It could provide OpenAI with leverage in negotiations and reduce their reliance on a single supplier.

xAI Oracle AI Infrastructure

Musk’s xAI Calls off $10 Billion Oracle Server Deal

• 

Chris McKay• July 9, 2024 • 2 min read

Musk confirmed the decision in a post on X explaining that xAI's "fundamental competitiveness depends on being faster than any other AI company."

AI Infrastructure

U.S. Government to Invest $285M in Digital Twin Technology for Semiconductor Industry

• 

Chris McKay• May 6, 2024 • 1 min read

The CHIPS Manufacturing USA institute will focus on research related to semiconductor digital twin development, establishing shared physical and digital facilities, industry demonstration projects, and workforce training.

Venture Capital Startups AI Infrastructure

CoreWeave's Valuation Skyrockets to $19 Billion in Latest Funding Round

• 

Chris McKay• May 1, 2024 • 2 min read

The $1.1 billion investment comes just five months after a previous round that valued the seven-year-old company at $7 billion.

AI Infrastructure

Micron Receives $6.1 Billion in CHIPS Act Funding to Boost Domestic Semiconductor Manufacturing

• 

Chris McKay• April 25, 2024 • 1 min read

Micron's projects are expected to create approximately 75,000 jobs over the next two decades and will contribute to strengthening U.S. economic and national security.

Meta AI Infrastructure

Meta Unveils Next-Generation AI Inference Accelerator: MTIA v2

• 

Chris McKay• April 10, 2024 • 2 min read

The second generation of MTIA offers 3X improvements in performance over its predecessor while maintaining a close tie-in to Meta's specific workloads.

Microsoft Japan AI Infrastructure

Microsoft Invests $2.9 Billion in Japan to Boost AI and Compute Infrastructure

• 

Richard Banfield• April 9, 2024 • 2 min read

Microsoft has pledged to empower 3 million full-time and part-time workers in Japan over the next three years through AI skilling initiatives.

Intel AI Infrastructure

Intel Unveils Gaudi 3 AI Accelerator

• 

Chris McKay• April 9, 2024 • 3 min read

The Gaudi 3 chip is designed to bring choice and flexibility to global enterprises looking to deploy generative AI (GenAI) at scale.

AMD AI Infrastructure

AMD Unveils Next-Gen Versal AI Edge and Prime Series Gen 2 Devices

• 

Chris McKay• April 9, 2024 • 2 min read

The new Versal Series Gen 2 devices are designed to meet the growing demand for AI-enabled embedded applications. By integrating multiple compute engines on a single chip, AMD aims to deliver high compute efficiency and performance, with scalability from low-end to high-end systems.

Arm AI Infrastructure

Arm Unveils Ethos-U85 NPU and Corstone-320 Platform to Accelerate Edge AI

• 

Chris McKay• April 9, 2024 • 2 min read

The company expects devices based on this technology to run generative AI models as soon as next year.

Google AI Infrastructure

Google Unveils Axion, Custom Arm-Based Chips for Data Centers

• 

Chris McKay• April 9, 2024 • 2 min read

Axion promises improved performance, energy efficiency, and sustainability for cloud computing.

AI Infrastructure

U.S. to Award TSMC $6.6 Billion for Arizona Chip Factories

• 

Richard Banfield• April 8, 2024 • 2 min read

This investment is part of the government's efforts to strengthen US economic and national security by increasing domestic chip production and reducing reliance on foreign suppliers.

Microsoft OpenAI AI Infrastructure

Microsoft and OpenAI Plan $100 Billion Stargate AI Supercomputer

• 

Chris McKay• March 29, 2024 • 2 min read

This audacious vision underscores the transformative potential of AI and the lengths tech giants are willing to go to secure their place at the forefront of this revolution.

Intel AI Infrastructure

Intel to Receive $8.5 Billion in CHIPS Act Funding, Catalyzing $100 Billion Investment

• 

Chris McKay• March 20, 2024 • 2 min read

Today's announcement is the fourth and largest preliminary agreement under the CHIPS Act, following earlier agreements with GlobalFoundries, Microchip Technology, and BAE Systems Electronic Systems.