AI Giants Forge Alliance; Are Competitors Falling Behind?
- Strategic AI Partnership: Nscale is integrating Vast Data's AI Operating System to power its massive global AI infrastructure expansion.
- Unprecedented Scale: The collaboration is set to support Nscale's plan to deploy 300,000 Nvidia Grace Blackwell GPUs, signaling a new era for hyperscale compute.
- Powering Major Players: This move underpins Nscale's recent high-profile deals, including providing Microsoft with over 116,000 Nvidia GPUs for its AI initiatives.
- A New AI Standard: The partnership aims to create a unified, globally distributed AI cloud, simplifying data access and boosting infrastructure efficiency for enterprise AI.
Nscale and Vast Data Unite to Build a Global AI Powerhouse
In a significant move that could reshape the AI landscape, neocloud provider Nscale has announced a major partnership with Vast Data. Nscale will leverage Vast Data's advanced AI Operating System to serve as the foundational data layer for its ambitious global expansion, which includes scaling to an astonishing 300,000 Nvidia Grace Blackwell GPUs.
This collaboration comes on the heels of several major announcements from Nscale, including landmark deals to supply Microsoft with immense GPU capacity in the US, Norway, and a new cluster in Portugal. The integration of Vast Data’s platform is designed to unify data access across continents and dramatically enhance the efficiency of its sprawling AI infrastructure.
Forging the Future of Enterprise AI
The vision, according to both companies, is to create an “integrated, globally distributed AI cloud” that sets a new industry standard. This isn't just about adding more raw computing power; it's about building a smarter, more cohesive foundation for the next generation of artificial intelligence.
“The future of AI will not be defined by raw compute alone, but by the strength of the foundations we build,” said Tom Burke, Chief Revenue Officer at Nscale. “With Vast as one of our data layers, we are able to take on the complexity of hyperscale AI and make it seamless for our customers.”
Jeff Denworth, co-founder of Vast Data, echoed this sentiment, stating, “This is not just about building another cloud, it is about creating the global fabric that will power the next generation of AI... AI innovation is impossible without a data platform that can keep up.”
A Vertically Integrated Strategy for Maximum Efficiency
Nscale’s strategy is a key differentiator. While the company utilizes colocation providers when necessary, its primary goal is to develop its own data centers from the ground up. This vertically integrated approach—from the physical data center to the GPU and the software orchestration layer with Vast—allows Nscale to achieve what Burke calls the "lowest cost of compute."
The decision to select Vast’s solution was driven by its ability to simplify the complex data environment. "[Vast] really simplifies the end user experience, both for us, as far as the cloud that we operate, as well as for our end customers," Burke explained.
Built on a Foundation of Partnership with Nvidia
Vast Data’s technology is deeply intertwined with Nvidia, the dominant force in AI hardware. In 2024, Vast Data unveiled an AI architecture developed in partnership with Nvidia, built on its BlueField-3 data processing unit (DPU) technology. This allows Vast’s operating system to be disaggregated and integrated natively into AI supercomputers, transforming them into highly efficient "AI data engines."
With Nscale’s massive investment in Nvidia GPUs and its strategic alliance with Vast Data, the partnership represents a powerful convergence of hardware and software, poised to define the model for hyperscale AI infrastructure for years to come.