AMD, the chipmaker sizzling on the heels of Nvidia within the AI race, at present introduced a giant acquisition to spice up its place as an “ecosystem” companion for corporations constructing large AI companies: It’s buying ZT Techniques, which supplies compute design and infrastructure for AI, cloud and normal function computing, for $4.9 billion. The deal is a mixture of money and inventory and features a contingent fee of as much as $400 million if sure efficiency metrics are met.
The plan is to include ZT Techniques’ computing infrastructure design enterprise. AMD stated it would look to promote ZT Techniques’ information middle infrastructure manufacturing enterprise to “a strategic companion.”
Based mostly in New Jersey, ZT Techniques has been privately held because it was based in 1994, and has disclosed just one exterior funding spherical — it raised $850 million in debt in 2023, in keeping with PitchBook. It really works intently with large chipmakers corresponding to Nvidia and Intel throughout areas corresponding to server options for storage, GPU/accelerators, high-performance computing, 5G and edge computing.
AMD stated the deal will give it a deeper bench of experience in AI methods design involving not simply silicon, however software program and methods — that might assist AMD promote extra of its chips (and methods powered by its chips) to prospects. AMD stated it has already invested about $1 billion in constructing its broader ecosystem.
There’s a want for that enhanced method: As AI methods develop extra complicated, one main precedence for giant tech corporations constructing and working them can be to extend the effectivity of their methods for probably the most compute-heavy elements corresponding to AI mannequin coaching and inferencing.
“Our acquisition of ZT Techniques is the subsequent main step in our long-term AI technique to ship management coaching and inferencing options that may be quickly deployed at scale throughout cloud and enterprise prospects,” AMD chair and CEO, Dr. Lisa Su, stated in a press release. “ZT provides world-class methods design and rack-scale options experience that can considerably strengthen our information middle AI methods and buyer enablement capabilities. This acquisition additionally builds on the investments we now have made to speed up our AI {hardware} and software program roadmaps. Combining our high-performance Intuition AI accelerator, EPYC CPU, and networking product portfolios with ZT Techniques’ industry-leading information middle methods experience will allow AMD to ship end-to-end information middle AI infrastructure at scale with our ecosystem of OEM and ODM companions.”
ZT Techniques doesn’t disclose the names of its purchasers, nevertheless it seems to have elevated its profile lately for offering specialist assist in a few of the thorniest and costliest elements of AI computing structure design.
Its CEO Frank Zhang will lead AMD’s manufacturing enterprise. ZT Techniques will grow to be part of AMD’s Knowledge Heart Options Enterprise Group.
“We’re excited to affix AMD and collectively play an excellent bigger position designing the AI infrastructure that’s defining the way forward for computing,” stated Zhang, CEO of ZT Techniques, in a press release. “For nearly 30 years we now have advanced our enterprise to grow to be a number one supplier of important computing and storage infrastructure for the world’s largest cloud corporations. AMD shares our imaginative and prescient for the necessary position our know-how and our individuals play designing and constructing the computing infrastructure powering the most important information facilities on the planet.”
ZT president Doug Huang will lead the design and buyer enablement groups, and each will report back to AMD government vp and normal supervisor, Forrest Norrod.
The deal is anticipated to shut within the first half of 2025.
