SambaNova raises $676 million for its AI platform

SambaNova Systems, a start-up based in Palo Alto, California, announced $676 million in Series D funding for its software, hardware and services to run AI applications.

SambaNova’s flagship offering is Dataflow-as-a-Service (DaaS), a subscription-based, extensible AI services platform designed to jump-start enterprise-level AI initiatives, augmenting organizations’ AI capabilities and accelerating the work of existing data centers, allowing the organization to focus on its business objectives instead of infrastructure.

At the core of DaaS is SambaNova’s DataScale, an integrated software and hardware systems platform with optimized algorithms and next-generation processors delivering unmatched capabilities and efficiency across applications for training, inference, data analytics, and high-performance computing. SambaNova’s software-defined-hardware approach has set world records in AI performance, accuracy, scale, and ease of use.

The funding round was led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2, and included additional new investors Temasek and GIC, plus existing backers including funds and accounts managed by BlackRock, Intel Capital, GV (formerly Google Ventures), Walden International and WRVI. This Series D brings SambaNova’s total funding to more than $1 billion and rockets its valuation to more than $5 billion.

SambaNova says it is working "to shatter the computational limits of AI hardware and software currently on the market — all while making AI solutions for private and public sectors more accessible."

“We’re here to revolutionize the AI market, and this round greatly accelerates that mission,” said Rodrigo Liang, SambaNova co-founder and CEO. “Traditional CPU and GPU architectures have reached their computational limits. To truly unleash AI’s potential to solve humanity’s greatest technology challenges, a new approach is needed. We’ve figured out that approach, and it’s exciting to see a wealth of prudent investors validate that.”

Stanford Professors Kunle Olukotun and Chris Ré, along with Liang, founded SambaNova in 2017 and came out of stealth in December 2020. Olukotun is known as the “father of the multi-core processor” and the leader of the Stanford Hydra Chip Multiprocessor (CMP) research project. Ré is an associate professor in the Department of Computer Science at Stanford University. He is a MacArthur Genius Award recipient, and is affiliated with the Statistical Machine Learning Group, Pervasive Parallelism Lab, and Stanford AI Lab.

http://www.sambanova.ai

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ADVA showcases 400ZR DCI interoperability with Acacia and Inphi

ADVA demonstrated interoperability between its FSP 3000 DCI open line system (OLS) and QSFP-DD 400ZR modules from Acacia Communications and Inphi Corporation. 

The trial, which was conducted over a 120km amplified link, featured 400 Gbps  WDM transport using low-power 400ZR pluggable QSFP-DD transceivers from Acacia and Inphi with ADVA’s FSP 3000 DCI OLS. It was carried out under real-world conditions with 400 Gbps channels placed next to the test channels as well as a fully loaded spectrum. To validate three-way line-side interoperability, 400ZR was transmitted from Acacia to Inphi and vice versa. Test results showed that this multi-vendor ecosystem exceeds all OIF 400ZR Implementation Agreement performance metrics. Large-scale DCI network operators now have an easy and cost-effective route to a dynamic, future-proof and open environment.

ADVA said the latest trials using a 120km single-mode fiber show that it exceeds 400ZR performance requirements under fully loaded conditions including 75GHz channel spacing, enabling an aggregate capacity of 26Tbit/s per fiber. ADVA’s DCI OLS and Acacia and Inphi’s QSFP-DD 400ZR modules offer operators a complete and validated solution built on best-of-breed components.

“Today, we’re showing a direct route to open DCI networking using 400ZR. By proving the next-level interoperability of our platform with Acacia and Inphi’s optical interconnect technology, we’re empowering network operators to effortlessly harness the benefits of both 400ZR and open infrastructure. This will be key to reducing cost and complexity in the new breed of high-bandwidth DCI networks,” said Steve Penticost, VP, global business development, ADVA.

“Acacia has a long, proven history of pluggable silicon photonics innovation and has continually driven down the level of power consumption, size and cost of coherent interconnects,” said Tom Williams, VP, marketing, Acacia Communications. “400Gbit/s coherent pluggables enable network operators to support their growing bandwidth demands using power-efficient solutions that offer operational flexibility. By showcasing the interoperability of our high-performance coherent platform in a QSFP form factor with ADVA’s new DCI OLS, we’re giving DCI networks a clear path to a compact and cost-efficient optical layer assembled with best-in-class innovation.”

“ COLORZ II 400ZR enables large cloud operators to connect metro data centers at a fraction of the cost of traditional coherent transport systems and allows switch and router companies to offer the same density for both coherent DWDM and client optics in the same chassis. Interoperable 400ZR solutions allow customers to deploy a validated ecosystem with our innovative low-power, high-performing pluggable solutions and ADVA’s next-generation DCI OLS,” said Josef Berger, AVP, optical interconnect, Inphi. 

https://www.adva.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/20210413-adva-showcases-400zr-dci-solution-with-acacia-and-inphi

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CoreSite offers 100G Dedicated AWS Direct Connect service

CoreSite Realty announced upgraded on-net availability of AWS Direct Connect supporting 100 Gbps Dedicated Connections in four key markets – Los Angeles, New York, Northern Virginia, and Santa Clara.

The private high-bandwidth connectivity between AWS and CoreSite’s data centers enables customers to lower operational overhead, while increasing capacity and performance delivered by 100 Gbps connections. 

CoreSite says the 100G connection will be particularly beneficial to applications that transfer large-scale datasets, such as for broadcast media distribution, autonomous vehicles, financial services trading and market information systems, and many other enterprises. 

“CoreSite now has four of our key communication markets enabled with 100Gbps AWS Direct Connect service, which demonstrates our strength as a leading integration point for hybrid IT,” said Steve Smith, CoreSite’s Chief Revenue Officer. “We are excited to enable these capabilities to our customers and any enterprise looking to modernize their business-critical IT infrastructure. The fact that leading cloud providers like AWS Direct Connect choose to deploy their strategic edge services is another indication that customers can be confident of their strategic decision to choose CoreSite as their data center, interconnection and cloud integration provider.”

https://investors.coresite.com/news-releases/news-release-details/coresite-announces-net-100g-dedicated-aws-direct-connect-now

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North Dakota's MLGC deploys XGS-PON with Calix

MLGC, a broadband service provider in North Dakota, is deploying the Calix Intelligent Access EDGE, enabling it to extend 5-Gigabit broadband service to subscribers. 

The rural BSP, which was named the state’s fastest internet and cable provider among small operators in 2020 by BroadbandNow, is expanding its multi-Gig residential broadband capabilities by overlaying its GPON access network with XGS-PON fiber-to-the-home (FTTH). 

Calix said its Intelligent Access EDGE solution is built on the temperature-hardened E7-2 Intelligent Modular System and its Always-On AXOS platform, enabling MLGC to embrace an everyPON strategy and scale broadband connections to 10-Gigabit. 

The regional BSP has already invested in the GigaPoint GP1100X ONU and plans to roll out the latest GigaSpire BLAST u6x in the second half of 2021, which will extend 10G capability all the way into subscriber homes and businesses. 

“At MLGC, we have always taken immense pride in our technological leadership and commitment to pushing our market forward—we love being first,” said Tyler Kilde, president and general manager at MLGC. “We had already seen our subscribers’ bandwidth usage profiles increasing, but with COVID accelerating that trend over the last year, we migrated all of our Gigabit subscribers to 2.5-Gigabit speeds. Even with home networks needing to balance remote working and distance learning while still handling entertainment like gaming and streaming, our network enabled us to make the upgrades without hesitation. With demand continuing to increase, we are looking to 5-Gigabit service and beyond—well past competing offerings. Furthermore, a recent influx of funding from RDOF (Rural Digital Opportunity Fund) is enabling us to deploy our 5-Gigabit service into additional rural communities in eastern North Dakota, and we are committed to leveraging this bandwidth advantage to deliver an unbeatable experience to our growing subscriber base. Calix is the only partner that enables us to continue our next-generation network buildout while, simultaneously, equipping us to deliver the comprehensive subscriber experience that will enable us to capitalize on our investment.”

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Vodafone activates 5G SA in Germany with Ericsson

Vodafone activated a 5G Standalone (SA) network, beginning in major German cities including Frankfurt. 

At the April 12 launch, technicians switched all mobile radio stations in the 3.5GHz range to 5G, connecting them to an independent 5G Core network. Ericsson has provided products and solutions from the Ericsson Radio System portfolio, as well Ericsson Cloud Core for the cloud-native microservices-based 5G Core, to help Vodafone build the new 5G standalone network in Germany.

Hannes Ametsreiter, CEO, Vodafone Germany, says: “We are clearing the way for real-time connectivity. 5G is standing on its own two feet in Germany for the first time. We are the first network operator to put aside the LTE support wheels for 5G - not for internal tests, but for our customers, who can experience real-time connections.“

Ericson said Vodafone is the first network operator in Europe to activate 5G Standalone on this scale.

Arun Bansal, President, Ericsson Europe and Latin America, says: “5G Standalone brings huge advantages to industry and consumers alike. With faster network response times, users can now harness the power of real-time mobile communication."

https://www.ericsson.com/en/news/3/2021/vodafone-partners-with-ericsson-for-europes-largest-commercial-5g-standalone-network

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NTT opens 16-megawatt Silicon Valley SV1 Data Center

NTT Ltd. inaugurated its new 16MW Silicon Valley Data Center (SV1) – marking the company's sixth U.S. data center campus and third data center opening this year, following February’s grand opening of new campuses in Chicago, Illinois, and Hillsboro, Oregon. 

The four-story data center features 64,000 sq. ft. of data floor space with customizable high-density vaults to support the demands of organizations of all sizes. Multiple Meet-Me-Rooms allow for network diversity and resiliency, and NTT’s dedicated on-site substation will help reduce potential downtime.

SV1 is designed with earthquake protection in mind. The data center construction utilizes NTT’s state-of-the-art base isolation system, which has been proven to reduce shocks from major earthquakes. The building incorporates a combination of triple-friction pendulum pedestals and viscous dampers that dissipate energy and reduce building displacement by allowing the structure and all connections to move up to 32 inches in any horizontal direction during an earthquake. With this system, the structure undergoes 60% less motion than a non-isolated, fixed building. SV1 is the first data center in the market to feature this earthquake-resistant design.

VP of Construction and Design for the Global Data Centers Americas division of NTT Ltd., Brittany Miller said, “All providers in the Santa Clara region build data centers to withstand earthquakes, but our base isolation design goes a step further. Not only does it protect the physical four-story building, but it also protects the mission-critical IT equipment and infrastructure inside the building from strong earthquakes. This system has been proven to work in several buildings in Japan, which is known for having severe earthquakes, and we wanted to add that extra peace of mind for our clients in Silicon Valley.”

NTT noted that its Ashburn, Virginia campus continues to expand as well with VA5 opening this year.

Executive Vice President for NTT Ltd.’s Global Data Centers division, Ryuichi Matsuo said, “The Silicon Valley Data Center reinforces our investment in the U.S. data center market and commitment to growth for our clients. With NTT’s flexible, scalable, secure infrastructure and full-stack services, SV1 will accommodate the needs of a variety of clients, helping them achieve their business objectives. Clients today are looking for a data center provider with a growing global portfolio, and this adds one more to NTT’s five other U.S campuses and the more than 160 data centers that we operate globally.”

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Illinois Century Network upgrades with SD-WAN

The Illinois Century Network (ICN), the largest state-run education network in the U.S., is deploying SD-WAN technology from Silver Peak, recently acquired by Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company. 

The planned five-year ICN SD-WAN deployment began in July 2019, and more than 100 locations turned up in the first four months — a quick and simple process due to zero-touch provisioning and technical support from Fujitsu.

Fujitsu Network Communications is integrating and supporting the upgrade.

“We are pleased to help Illinois DoIT integrate and support their SD-WAN solution so they can ensure a superior online learning experience for thousands of students and faculty across the state,” said Greg Manganello, SVP and head of wireless and service solutions, Fujitsu Network Communications, Inc. “SD-WAN not only secures connectivity through encryption, it also improves network scalability and resiliency all within the long-term affordability envelope that ICN requires.”

https://www.fujitsu.com/us/about/resources/news/press-releases/2021/fnc20210413.html

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Cerebras appoints CMO as it continues to grow

Cerebras Systems, a start-up developing a Wafer Scale Engine (WSE) chip that contains 1.2 trillion transistors, covers more than 46,225 square millimeters of silicon and contains 400,000 AI optimized compute cores, announced the appointment of Rupal Shah Hollenbeck as Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer (CMO). 

Prior to Cerebras, Hollenbeck served as senior vice president and CMO at Oracle, where she led the marketing transformation strategy for the company, while overseeing global brand and demand generation for all product areas. Previously, she held various senior leadership positions at Intel for more than two decades, most recently serving as Corporate Vice President and General Manager for Sales & Marketing in Intel’s Data Center division. Hollenbeck serves as an Independent Director of Check Point Software Technologies and is a Founding Limited Partner in Neythri Futures Fund, a venture fund dedicated to bringing diversity to the investment ecosystem.

“I am thrilled to join Cerebras’ industry-leading team as they tackle some of society’s most urgent and challenging problems with their groundbreaking CS-1 AI supercomputer,” said Hollenbeck. “I’ve been impressed with Cerebras’ customer traction over the past year, and I look forward to further accelerating this momentum with new global partnerships and customer deployments.”

Over the past year, Cerebras opened new offices in Tokyo, Japan and Toronto, Canada. The company also announced a series of wins for its flagship product, the CS-1, including deployments at Argonne National Laboratory, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center (PSC) for its groundbreaking Neocortex AI supercomputer, EPCC, the supercomputing centre at the University of Edinburgh, and pharmaceutical leader GlaxoSmithKline.

https://cerebras.net/

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