Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) is working on a new network card aimed at enhancing the performance of its Maia AI server chip, a move that might decrease its dependence on Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA), The Information reported on Tuesday.
The project is reportedly being led by Pradeep Sindhu, a co-founder of Juniper Networks, who has been appointed by Microsoft's CEO, Satya Nadella following the acquisition of his server chip startup, Fungible, in 2023.
Per the report, the upcoming network card is akin to Nvidia’s ConnectX-7 card, which is marketed in conjunction with Nvidia's flagship GPUs.
If successful, the initiative could potentially streamline the training of OpenAI models on Microsoft's servers, making it both faster and more cost-effective.
The new product could take more than a year to develop, the report states.