Nokia supercharges AI with Ultra Ethernet

• Nokia working with Ultra Ethernet Consortium to develop an open networking standard to address demanding networking requirements of high-performance computing (HPC) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) workloads
• Nokia leadership in Ethernet networking and standards development to help to shape Ultra Ethernet as highly compatible, low cost and interoperable part of AI and HPC application stacks

Nokia today announced its support for the Ultra Ethernet Consortium (UEC), a group that brings together companies for industry-wide cooperation to develop Ethernet specifications and software APIs that empower AI and HPC environments. Nokia will bring its technology leadership in building super scalable, low latency deterministic networks for data centers and data center interconnect to the definition of the Ultra Ethernet standard being developed by the UEC.

The AI revolution is not only driving the need for expanded computing resources, it’s also driving changes to networks, especially those connecting computing clusters for HPC used in AI training and inference. The near-universal protocol for data networks, Ethernet is the ideal place to start for meeting the broad performance needs of AI. With Nokia’s support, the UEC will develop new standards, best practices and architectures for specialized AI data center networks.

As a leader in providing super scalable, low latency network solutions for data center and data center interconnect, Nokia will bring its extensive expertise to bear on defining Ultra Ethernet. The company will leverage its deep understanding of web, enterprise and service provider networks by contributing to several UEC working groups, where it will help ensure that Ultra Ethernet will meet the critical needs of all its customers.

J Metz, Chair of the Ultra Ethernet Consortium, said: “The UEC welcomes Nokia’s deep experience and expertise in building some of the world’s highest-performing networks. Together with a broad ecosystem of consortium partners, our goal is to provide an open, interoperable standard that allows networks to be upgraded easily and inexpensively to meet the needs of AI and HPC applications. With strong partners like Nokia, we know the UEC will drive the kind of standard to ensure broad AI adoption.”

Vach Kompella, Head of Nokia’s IP business, said: “Generative AI and ML are revolutionizing every aspect of our customers’ businesses. Our networking solutions advance their ability to deploy AI quickly and pursue exciting new use cases and applications. With our extensive footprint in communications, enterprise and webscale networks, we are focused on making Ultra Ethernet a highly compatible, low cost and interoperable part of future AI and HPC application stacks.”