New Lenovo And Intel Partnership To Accelerate AI, High-Performance Computing Innovation

‘Our extended collaboration with Lenovo combines the best of both companies’ innovations to drive our customers’ progress forward even faster,’ says Intel’s data center leader, Navin Shenoy.

Lenovo and Intel are driving deeper synergies through a new partnership aimed at accelerating artificial intelligence and high-performance computing innovation by bringing together Lenovo’s portfolio, including its TruScale Infrastructure, with Intel technologies.

“Intel is laser-focused on helping our customers spur innovation and discovery through the convergence of AI with HPC,” said Navin Shenoy, Intel executive vice president and general manager of the Data Center Group, in a statement. “Our extended collaboration with Lenovo combines the best of both companies’ innovations to drive our customers’ progress forward even faster.”

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The multiyear collaboration will bring together Lenovo’s TruScale Infrastructure with Intel technology including Intel Optane DC persistent memory, Intel oneAPI programming framework, and current and future generations of its AI-build Xeon Scalable processors.

TruScale is a consumption-based, Infrastructure-as-a-Service offering based on electrical consumption that allows customers to use and pay for on-premises data center hardware and services without having to purchase the equipment.

Michael Goldstein, CEO of LAN Infotech, a Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based Lenovo partner, said the technology partnership will boost Lenovo’s broad portfolio of data center offerings. “This definitely adds some uniqueness to Lenovo’s solutions,” Goldstein said.

Getting customers and businesses to understand what artificial intelligence can do for them is a huge focus for LAN Infotech this year, according to Goldstein. “It’s not only for the Fortune companies out there—we probably use it in our everyday life and don’t realize it,” he said. “It’s interesting for [Lenovo] to come out with pieces that are on [high-performance computing]. There’s been a lot of different pieces we’re seeing come from Lenovo, not only with AI but some virtual reality pieces [as well].”

Under the new Intel-Lenovo partnership, a key strategy will be building out Lenovo’s software offerings, including the optimization of its LiCO HPC/AI software stack, for Intel’s next-generation technologies. In addition, the two companies will work to enable Intel’s DAOS (Distributed Asynchronous Object Storage) open-source software storage frameworks to help HPC and AI customers run their appliances with greater ease.

The multiyear collaboration agreement also includes a plan to create a new ecosystem for the convergence of HPC and AI. The two companies will build joint HPC and AI “centers of excellence” around the globe to enable research and university centers to develop new solutions to solve some of the world’s most pervasive challenges, they said in a statement.

“Our goal is to further accelerate innovation into the Exascale era, aggressively waterfalling these solutions to scientists and businesses of all sizes to speed discovery and outcomes. We are passionate in helping researchers solve humanity’s greatest challenges,” said Kirk Skaugen, executive vice president of Lenovo and president of Lenovo’s Data Center Group, in a statement.

Intel and Lenovo have a long-standing partnership in the data center. For example, the two combine Intel’s second-generation Xeon Scalable platform with Lenovo’s Neptune liquid cooling solution through joint engineering.

Move coverage on the Intel and Lenovo news to follow.