What’s New: IBM and Intel announced a global collaboration to deploy Intel® Gaudi® 3 AI accelerators as a service on IBM Cloud. This offering, which is expected to be available in early 2025, aims to help more cost-effectively scale enterprise AI and drive innovation underpinned with security and resiliency. This collaboration will also enable support for Gaudi 3 within IBM’s watsonx AI and data platform. IBM Cloud is the first cloud service provider (CSP) to adopt Gaudi 3, and the offering will be available for both hybrid and on-premise environments.

“Unlocking the full potential of AI requires an open and collaborative ecosystem that provides customers with choice and accessible solutions. By integrating Gaudi 3 AI accelerators and Xeon CPUs with IBM Cloud, we are creating new AI capabilities and meeting the demand for affordable, secure and innovative AI computing solutions.”

–Justin Hotard, Intel executive vice president and general manager of the Data Center and AI Group

Why It Matters: While generative AI has the potential to accelerate transformation, the required compute power needed emphasizes the importance of availability, performance, cost, energy efficiency and security as top priorities for enterprises. Through this collaboration, Intel and IBM aim to lower the total cost of ownership to leverage and scale AI, while enhancing performance. Gaudi 3, integrated with 5th Gen Xeon, supports enterprise AI workloads in the cloud and in data centers, providing customers with visibility and control over their software stack, simplifying workload and application management. IBM Cloud and Gaudi 3 aim to help customers more cost-effectively scale enterprise AI workloads, while prioritizing performance, security and resiliency.

For generative AI inferencing workloads, IBM plans to enable support for Gaudi 3 within IBM’s watsonx AI and data platform, providing watsonx clients with additional AI infrastructure resources for scaling their AI workloads across hybrid cloud environments, helping to optimize model inferencing price/performance.

“IBM is committed to helping our clients drive AI and hybrid cloud innovation by offering solutions to meet their business needs. Our dedication to security and resiliency with IBM Cloud has helped fuel IBM’s hybrid cloud and AI strategy for our enterprise clients,” said Alan Peacock, general manager of IBM Cloud. “Leveraging Intel’s Gaudi 3 accelerators on IBM Cloud will provide our clients access to a flexible enterprise AI solution that aims to optimize cost performance. We are unlocking potential new AI business opportunities, designed for clients to more cost-effectively test, innovate and deploy AI inferencing solutions.”

How It Works: IBM and Intel are collaborating to provide a Gaudi 3 service capability to support clients leveraging AI. To help clients across industries, including those that are heavily regulated, IBM and Intel intend to leverage IBM Cloud’s security and compliance capabilities. 

• Scalability and Flexibility: IBM Cloud and Intel offer scalable and flexible solutions that allow clients to adjust computing resources as needed, which has the potential to lead to cost savings and operational efficiency.
• Enhanced Performance and Security: Integrating Gaudi 3 into IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC will help enable x86-based enterprises to run applications faster and more securely than before the integration, enhancing user experiences.

What’s Next: Intel and IBM have a long-standing collaboration, from the development of the IBM PC to the creation of enterprise AI solutions with Gaudi 3. IBM Cloud with Gaudi 3 offerings will be generally available at the beginning of 2025. Stay tuned for more updates from Intel and IBM in the coming months. To learn more, visit the Intel Gaudi 3 AI accelerators website.