AMD, Reliance Jio Partner for AI in India

San Francisco, Jul 3 (PTI) India is a "super important" market for AMD and the largest telco Reliance Jio is among the customers using the graphic processing units (GPUs) in its data centres, a senior official has said.

The company, which has around 8,000 employees here, considers India as a key hub from an engineering perspective, officials have said.

Speaking to PTI on the sidelines of the Advancing AI event organised by the company recently, AMD General Manager for Data Center GPU business unit Andrew Dieckman spoke about the work with Jio.

"So we've deployed a fairly significant POC (proof of concept) with them that we're working on. And we are working on some future deployment plans that are yet to be announced in the future," he said, adding that Jio is an "important partner" for the company in India.

Earlier, the company's Chief Executive Lisa Su said it is working with top companies, including Meta, OpenAI, Tesla, and Reliance Jio, for powering their AI advancements, and added that many of the customers have been added in the last nine months.

About 70 per cent of companies at the top of AI work, including Reliance Jio, are using AMD's 'Instinct' GPUs, she said, displaying a long list of brands.

It can be noted that Jio had earlier announced a partnership with AMD's bigger rival Nvidia on building AI infrastructure in the country.

The collaboration is aimed at advancing India's capabilities in harnessing the power of AI for various industries and sectors, as per the company. There were media reports last year saying Jio's parent Reliance Industries will be using Nvidia's Blackwell chips for its data center.

At the event, Su said her company's offerings are much cheaper than rivals while delivering the same or better computing performance.

On perceptions of Nvidia holding the edge when it comes to the GPU market, Dieckman said one company will not define everything that is AI for the entire world and added that it is a very large market that can accommodate multiple winners.

"There will not be one company that will define everything that is AI for the entire world. This is not healthy, and nor will strong companies and strong sovereign nations allow that to happen, because it's just putting all of your eggs in one very specific basket," he said.

AMD is not a "transactional company" and believes in a very collaborative mindset, he said, pointing out that it has an open ecosystem.

Apart from working with Reliance Jio, AMD is also keen on offering its services to the Sovereign AI initiative, he said.

"We are seeking to work very closely with the various large players there (in India) to bring domestic solutions to market and make sure that India is well represented in terms of having your own sovereign AI capabilities.

AMD is working with 40 sovereigns or governments across the globe at present, he added.

Speaking about AMD's operations in the country, where it employs over 8,000 people, Dieckman said the company has a large footprint in India and the country plays a critical role in its research and development.

"When you look at the growth rate and GDP of India, (it is) super important on market for us. And we are seeking to work very closely with, you know, the various large players there to bring domestic solutions to market and make sure that India is well represented in terms of having your own sovereign AI capabilities," he said. PTI AA

(The correspondent was in San Francisco on the invite of AMD)