Call Notes: Compute Hardware & Semiconductor Ecosystem
Every quarter I participate in a call for buy-side investment analysts focused on compute hardware and the broader semiconductor ecosystem. Here, I’m sharing the raw notes from that call.
Research Note: Microsoft Azure Maia 200 Inference Accelerator
Microsoft recently announced its second-generation custom AI accelerator, the Maia 200. The new chip is an inference-optimized alternative to third-party GPUs in its Azure infrastructure. The company says the accelerator delivers 30% better performance per dollar than existing Azure hardware while supporting OpenAI’s GPT-5.2 models and Microsoft’s own synthetic data generation workloads.
Research Note: HPE’s New Networking & Compute (NRF 2026)
At the recent NRF 2026 in New York, HPE expanded its retail-focused infrastructure portfolio with new networking and compute capabilities intended for always-on retail environments. The announcements emphasize tighter integration between edge networking, cloud-native AI operations, and fault-tolerant compute to support transaction continuity, operational visibility, and distributed retail services.
“Chips” is now the “C” in CES
While the focus of CES 2026 remained on consumer electronics, this year felt different. More expansive, with the semiconductor industry dominating the pre-show with overlapping announcements that reveal diverging strategies for AI workload acceleration, manufacturing sovereignty, and market expansion beyond traditional computing segments.
Research Note: Dell Adds 20+ Features to its AI Factory
Dell Technologies announced more than 20 updates to its AI Factory portfolio ahead of next week’s SC25 event, spanning compute, storage, networking, and cooling infrastructure. The announcements center on three primary themes: expanded support for NVIDIA Blackwell GPUs across multiple server platforms, introduction of AMD MI355X-based systems, and deeper integration of automation tools across the infrastructure stack.
Quick Take: Qualcomm’s Diversification Strategy is Paying Off
Qualcomm’s fiscal Q4 2025 results tell a story that extends far beyond the smartphone chips that built the company. While the guidance-busting earnings numbers, $11.3 billion in revenue and $3.00 EPS, are impressive, it’s not the full story.
Research Brief: Cisco Partner Summit Infrastructure Announcements
At its 2025 Partner Summit in San Diego this week, Cisco announced three interconnected infrastructure initiatives to address the operational, connectivity, and edge-computing requirements of AI workloads.
The announcements span network management simplification through AgenticOps workflows, GPU-as-a-Service connectivity via SD-WAN integration with Megaport AI Exchange, and a new converged edge computing platform called Unified Edge.
Research Note: Qualcomm Introduces AI200 & AI250 for Data Center Inference
Qualcomm Technologies recently announced two data center inference accelerators, the AI200 and AI250, targeting commercial availability in 2026 and 2027, respectively. The products are Qualcomm’s first strategic push into rack-scale AI inference.
Research Note: Marvell Solidifies CXL Leadership w/ Ecosystem-Wide Interoperability
The CXL ecosystem is moving quickly from concept to deployment as hyperscalers, OEMs, and chipmakers seek new ways to address the memory bottlenecks that limit AI, cloud, and high-performance computing workloads. In this environment, interoperability is not a checkbox—it is the foundation that determines how quickly new architectures can reach scale.
Broadcom’s Tomahawk Ultra: Challenging Nvidia’s Dominance in AI Networking
The significance of this battle lies in “scale-up” computing – the technique of ensuring closely located chips can communicate at lightning speed.
Research Note: Red Hat OpenShift on Dell AI Factory with NVIDIA
Dell Technologies recently announced that its integrated Red Hat OpenShift with its Dell AI Factory with NVIDIA platform is now generally available to customers. The solution was previewed earlier this year at Dell Tech world. The updated solution combines Dell PowerEdge infrastructure, NVIDIA GPU acceleration, Red Hat container orchestration, and NVIDIA AI Enterprise software into a validated stack.
Research Note: IBM Power11
IBM recently announced the latest generation of its Power family, Power 11. The new processor and associated servers provide a significant architectural evolution, focusing on autonomous operations, AI integration, and hybrid cloud deployment.
Research Note: HPE’s Updated AI Factory
At its recent Discover event, HPE announced an expansion of its NVIDIA-based AI Computing portfolio with three distinct AI factory configurations targeting enterprise, service provider, and sovereign deployment scenarios.The offerings center on the upgraded HPE Private Cloud AI platform, which integrates NVIDIA Blackwell GPUs with HPE ProLiant Gen12 servers, custom storage solutions, and orchestration software.
HPE Discover 2025: The AI Evolution Takes Center Stage (and Everywhere Else) Day 1 Wrap Up
Las Vegas, Nevada – Antonio Neri took the stage at HPE Discover 2025’s opening day keynote, captivating a massive audience at the iconic Sphere in Las Vegas. Thousands of excited attendees filled the unique venue, buzzing with anticipation to hear HPE’s vision and groundbreaking announcements for the future of AI, hybrid cloud, and networking. The […]
Research Note: AMD Raises its Game at its Advancing AI 2025 Event
AMD announced a comprehensive portfolio of AI infrastructure solutions at its recent Advancing AI 2025 event, positioning itself as a full-stack competitor to NVIDIA.
The announcements include the immediate availability of MI350 Series GPUs with 4x generational performance improvements, the ROCm 7.0 software platform achieving 3.5x gains in inference, and the AMD Developer Cloud for broader ecosystem access.
AMD also previewed its 2026 “Helios” rack solution, which integrates MI400 GPUs, EPYC “Venice” CPUs, and Pensando “Vulcano” NICs.
Quick Take: Dell Tech World 2025
Last week I was back in Las Vegas for Dell Technologies World 2025. The company has a broad portfolio but was telling a single-minded story: Dell has a relentless focus on AI, emphasizing the Dell AI Factory and the shift towards on-premises enterprise AI solutions.
Research Note: Dell Updates its Dell AI Factory with NVIDIA
At its annual Dell Technologies World event in Las Vegas, Dell announced significant updates to its AI Factory with NVIDIA, expanding the platform’s hardware capabilities and introducing new managed services.
The updated platform targets enterprises transitioning from AI experimentation to full-scale implementation, particularly for agentic AI and multi-modal applications.
Key updates include new PowerEdge server configurations supporting up to 256 NVIDIA Blackwell Ultra GPUs per rack, enhanced data platform integrations, and comprehensive managed services.
Research Note: HPE’s New Full-Stack Enterprise AI Infrastructure Offerings
At the recent NVIDIA GTC 2025, Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) and NVIDIA jointly introduced NVIDIA AI Computing by HPE, full-stack AI infrastructure offerings targeting enterprise deployment of generative, agentic, and physical AI workloads.
The solutions span private cloud AI platforms, observability and management software, reference blueprints, AI development environments, and new AI-optimized servers featuring NVIDIA’s Blackwell architecture.
Research Note: HPE ProLiant Gen12 Servers
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) recently introduced eight new ProLiant Compute Gen12 servers for enhanced security, performance optimization, and AI-powered management. These servers will feature the upcoming Intel Xeon 6 processors and are built for data centers and edge environments.
Research Note: DeepSeek’s Impact on IT Infrastructure Market
Chinese AI startup DeepSeek recently introduced an AI model, DeepSeek-R1l that the company claims that it matches or surpasses models from industry. The move created significant buzz in the AI industry. Though the claims remain unverified, the potential to democratize AI training and fundamentally alter industry dynamics is clear.
Research Brief: Oracle Exadata X11M
Oracle recently launched of its latest Exadata platform, the Oracle Exadata X11M. Purpose-built to optimize the performance of Oracle Database, including Oracle Autonomous Database, X11M is a significant leap forward in speed and efficiency compared to previous generation Exadata systems for cloud, multi-cloud, and customer data centers.
Quick Take: AWS re:Invent AI Services & Infrastructure Announcement Wrap-Up
AWS has made close to 50 announcements in the first 2 days of re:Invent. This blog takes a look at the most interesting AI services & infrastructure related ones.
Quick Take: AWS re:Invent Day 1
AWS unveiled a range of new features and services, reflecting its continued focus on innovation across generative AI, compute, and storage. These announcements include enhancements to Amazon Bedrock for improved testing and data integration, new capabilities for the generative AI assistant Amazon Q, high-performance storage-optimized EC2 instances, and advanced storage solutions like intelligent tiering and a dedicated data transfer terminal
IT Infrastructure Round-Up: Emerging Trends in Infrastructure and Connectivity (Nov 2024)
November was a busy month of announcements in infrastructure and connectivity, revealing a convergence of innovation to meet the stringent demands of AI-driven workloads, scalability, and cost efficiency.
SC24: Shaping the Future of IT with High-Performance Computing and AI
Last week’s Supercomputing 2024 (SC24) conference in Atlanta brought together IT leaders, researchers, and industry innovators to unveil advancements in HPC and AI, with even a little quantum computing thrown in.
Research Note: Dell AI Portfolio Updates
Dell Technologies made significant strides in AI infrastructure with its Integrated Rack 7000 (IR7000) launch and associated platforms for AI and HPC. The announcements introduce enhancements in computing density, power efficiency, and data management, catering specifically to AI workloads.
Research Note: Lenovo ThinkSystem V4 & 6th Gen Neptune
Lenovo recently announced significant updates to its enterprise infrastructure portfolio, introducing the new ThinkSystem V4 servers and the latest generation of its Neptune liquid-cooling technology, designed to address the growing demands of HPC and AI workloads.
Is Ampere Computing Up for Sale?
Ampere Computing, the leading vendor of server processors based on the Arm architecture, is reportedly exploring a sale, signaling a strategic pivot amidst increasing competition in the market for alternative server processors.
Research Note: HPE Q3 FY2024 Earnings
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) delivered a strong Q3 FY2024 earnings report, beating Wall Street estimates with its $7.7 billion in net revenue, up 10% year over year and exceeding guidance. The company saw growth across AI systems, hybrid cloud, and networking.
Research Note: Dell Q2 FY2025 Data Center Earnings
Dell Technologies’ latest earnings report paints a picture of a company amid a transformative shift, fueled by increasing demand for AI-driven solutions. In its second quarter of fiscal 2025, Dell delivered strong revenue growth, underscored by the rapid expansion of its Infrastructure Solutions Group (ISG) and a notable surge in AI server sales.
Research Note: Lenovo AI Updates
Lenovo recently introduced new enterprise AI solutions designed to simplify AI adoption. These include turnkey services, business-ready vertical solutions, and energy-efficient innovations to accelerate practical AI applications.
Research Note: VAST Data/Cisco AI Collaboration
VAST Data and Cisco announced a new collaboration to deliver a robust, high-performance AI data infrastructure that integrates seamlessly with an Ethernet-based AI fabric designed to handle data at an exabyte scale. Each company brings specialized expertise to create a unified, high-performance AI data platform.
Quick Take: Hammerspace Integrates Gryf with SourceCode/GigaIO Partnership
Hammerspace announced a significant addition to its Global Data Platform, enabling it to process, store, and manage data in edge compute environments. This advancement is achieved through the integration with Gryf, a portable AI supercomputer developed by SourceCode and GigaIO. This combined solution brings increased shared AI processing power to edge locations, even those with limited or no network infrastructure.
Microsoft Azure Cobalt 100 Arm-based VMs
At its 2024 Microsoft Build Event this week, Microsoft announced the preview of new Azure Virtual Machines powered by Microsoft’s previously announced in-house-design Arm-based processor, the Cobalt 100
Research Brief: Dell AI Factory
At NVIDIA GTC earlier this year, Dell announced a collaboration with NVIDIA to deliver the Dell AI Factory with NVIDIA that was heavily based on NVIDIA technology. At this year’s Dell Tech World, Dell went further, introducing its own Dell AI Factory, while also updating the Dell AI Factory with NVIDIA.
Quick Take: New Dell PowerEdge Models
Dell Technologies announced enhancements to its PowerEdge server portfolio. The servers are designed for versatility and aim to simplify operations across various sectors, including CSPs, small businesses, and edge operations.
Quick Take: IBM Power S1012
IBM expanded its server portfolio with the introduction of its new IBM Power S1012. Based on IBM’s Power10 processor, the new server offers up to three times more performance per core compared to its predecessor, the Power S812, in a 1-socker half-width form factor.
Nvidia And Dell Build An AI Factory Together
At last month’s Nvidia GTC conference, Dell Technologies unveiled the Dell AI Factory with Nvidia, a comprehensive set of enterprise AI solutions aimed at simplifying the adoption and integration of AI for businesses.
Dell also announced enhancements to its flagship PowerEdge XE9680 server, including options for liquid-cooling, which allows the server to deliver the full capabilities of Nvidia’s newly announced AI accelerators.
Research Note: Lenovo’s AMD-based AI Portfolio Update
Lenovo announced a comprehensive set of AMD-based updates to its AI infrastructure portfolio, which include GPU-rich and thermal-efficient systems designed for compute-intensive workloads in various industries, including financial services and healthcare.
The new offerings, designed in partnership with AMD, address the growing demand for compute-intensive workloads across industries, providing the flexibility and scalability required for AI deployments.
Research Note: Intel “Emerald Rapids” 5th Generation Xeon Processor
Intel unveiled its new Emerald Rapids processors, part of its 5th-Gen Xeon Scalable lineup at its recent “AI Everywhere” event. The new processors arrive with multiple features designed to enhance performance across workloads, including AI and HPC.
Dell Partners with Hugging Face & Meta for Enterprise AI
Dell and Hugging Face are working together to aid enterprise adoption of AI by providing a platform where businesses can easily select, deploy, and fine-tune AI models for their specific use cases using Dell’s infrastructure.
Research Note: AMD’s new MI300X & MI300A AI Accelerators
AMD recently announced its new MI300x and MI300a AI accelerators, its most significant challenge to NVIDIA yet.
Research Note: Microsoft’s New Processor & Accelerator
At its recent Microsoft Ignite event, the company announced the launch of the Azure Cobalt 100 CPU and the Maia 100 AI accelerator, marking a significant pivot in Microsoft’s approach to its cloud infrastructure and representing the company’s commitment to driving innovation in high-performance computing and AI.
Research Note: Lenovo Fiscal Q2 2024 Earnings
This Research Note explores Lenovo Group Limited’s financial and operational performance across its distinct business units in its Fiscal Q2 2024. Focusing on the Solutions and Services Group (SSG), Infrastructure Solutions Group (ISG), and Intelligent Device Group (IDG), looking at each business unit’s contributions to Lenovo’s overall business strategy.