SoftBank to Use Nvidia Superchips in Data Centers

SoftBank unveiled plans to power future data centers in Japan with Nvidia’s latest Arm-based AI chip. The two companies have collaborated to develop a platform for generative AI and mobile applications.

The Japanese operator stated the pair would build data centers capable of hosting generative AI, 5G, and 6G services on a multi-tenant common server platform, which reduces costs and is more energy efficient. “As we enter an era where society co-exists with AI, the demand for data processing and electricity requirements will rapidly increase,“ SoftBank president and CEO Junichi Miyakawa stated.

He added the collaboration would enable its infrastructure to achieve a significantly higher performance using AI, including optimization of the RAN. “We expect it can also help us reduce energy consumption and create a network of interconnected data centers that can be used to share resources and host a range of generative AI applications.“

Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang noted demand for accelerated computing and generative AI is driving a fundamental change in the architecture of data centers. The US-based chipmaker unveiled the GH200 Grace Hopper CPU last month. SoftBank separately introduced an AI chat service for use among its 20,000 employees, claiming the service enables staff to access the technology in a secure environment.