Nvidia and iPhone maker Foxconn to build ‘AI factories’

Nvidia, the world’s most valuable chip company, is teaming up with iPhone maker Foxconn to build so-called “AI factories.”

The companies say it’s a new type of data center that uses Nvidia chips to run a “wide range” of applications.

They include training autonomous vehicles, robotics platforms, and large language models.

The latest export restrictions announced by Washington this week will block sales of cutting-edge AI chips created by Nvidia for the Chinese market — the A800 and H800, according to the company.

Taiwan-born Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Foxconn Chairman Young Liu took to the stage at Foxconn’s annual technology expo in Taipei on Wednesday.

“A new type of manufacturing has emerged – the production of intelligence information and the data centers that produce it are artificial intelligence factories,” Huang said, according to what was reported by Reuters, adding that Foxconn has the experience and scale to build these factories globally.

Liu also said Foxconn is trying to “transform itself from a manufacturing services company into a platform solutions company,” citing smart cities and smart manufacturing as other applications for AI factories.

This makes it the fifth publicly traded US company to join the so-called “Trillion Dollar Club,” alongside Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet and Amazon.

Meanwhile, Foxconn, which makes more than half of the world’s Apple products, is trying to diversify its business and replicate its success in assembling personal computers and smartphones.

In an exclusive interview in June, Liu told the BBC that electric cars will drive their growth in the coming decades.

In January, Foxconn and NVIDIA announced a partnership to develop autonomous vehicle platforms, where Foxconn will manufacture electronic control units for cars based on NVIDIA chips.