IBM is considering using its internally designed artificial intelligence chips to reduce the cost of cloud computing services.
Kuma, the general manager of the company? During an interview with Reuters at the Semiconductor Conference in San Francisco, Carley stated that the company is considering using a chip called “Artificial Intelligence Unit” as part of its newly launched “Watson X” cloud service.
IBM hopes to use generative artificial intelligence technology to provide users with more convenient services, which can better learn human text and language solutions compared to its first major artificial intelligence system, “Watson,” launched more than a decade ago.
It is said that one of the main obstacles faced by the old “Watson” system is the high cost, and IBM hopes to solve this problem by using self-developed AI chips this time. Carley said that using their own chips can reduce the cost of cloud computing services because they are very energy-efficient.
IBM launched its AI chip in October last year, but did not disclose detailed information such as the manufacturer or how to use it. Carrey said that the chip is manufactured by Samsung Electronics, which has a partnership with IBM in semiconductor research, and IBM is considering using it for Watson X.
At present, IBM has not yet determined when its chips will be available for cloud customers, but Carrey stated that the company already has thousands of prototype chips in operation.
Previously, other technology giants such as Alphabet’s Google and Amazon had already started designing their own AI chips.
But Carrey stated that IBM is not attempting to design a direct replacement for Nvidia chips, as their chips are leading the way in training large AI systems with large amounts of data. On the contrary, IBM’s chips aim to become what industry insiders call cost-effective chips for inference, using trained AI systems for practical decision-making processes.