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Meta in talks to spend billions on Google's chips, The Information reports

Daniel Nenni

Admin
Staff member
1764087543419.png


Meta is reportedly in deep talks with Google to commit billions of dollars toward purchasing Google’s AI chips, specifically tensor processing units (TPUs), for use in its data centers starting in 2027. In parallel, Meta may begin renting TPUs from Google Cloud as early as next year, according to the report.

This would mark a major shift for Google, which has historically confined TPUs to its own infrastructure; by opening them up to external companies, Google could position itself as a serious competitor to Nvidia in the AI chip market. Google Cloud executives reportedly see the potential to capture up to 10% of Nvidia’s revenue through this strategy.

For Meta, this isn’t just about cost — the TPUs are being pitched as a more secure and potentially cheaper alternative to Nvidia’s GPUs, especially as demand surges and supply tightens. Yahoo While the deal remains unverified and all three parties have declined comment, the move could significantly reshape the landscape of AI computing infrastructure.

 
I have heard this as well. Renting chips is an interesting business model. I can't wait to see the numbers behind this. Exciting times in the semiconductor industry, absolutely.
 
I think "renting chips" just means Meta gets a special deal on using TPUs in Google Cloud, which Google already supports.


IMO, there's no way Google offers TPUs to generally compete with Nvidia GPUs. Everything about TPU hardware, including the interconnect networks, are proprietary. Nonetheless, if Meta is thinking of using Google as a systems-level source for TPU-based nodes and racks, that could be very interesting for both companies. I strongly suspect Google systems would be substantially cheaper than Nvidia-based comparable systems, from any vendor, and also more power-efficient.
 
I think "renting chips" just means Meta gets a special deal on using TPUs in Google Cloud, which Google already supports.
IMO, there's no way Google offers TPUs to generally compete with Nvidia GPUs. Everything about TPU hardware, including the interconnect networks, are proprietary. Nonetheless, if Meta is thinking of using Google as a systems-level source for TPU-based nodes and racks, that could be very interesting for both companies. I strongly suspect Google systems would be substantially cheaper than Nvidia-based comparable systems, from any vendor, and also more power-efficient.

Are you saying Reuters is wrong? :ROFLMAO: Google selling TPUs would be a really big deal. I wonder if Amazon and the other hyperscalers will follow suit? Or is this just a jab at Nvidia to get more competitive pricing?

Here is the non-paywall version:

 
Are you saying Reuters is wrong? :ROFLMAO:
Who me? :rolleyes:
Google selling TPUs would be a really big deal. I wonder if Amazon and the other hyperscalers will follow suit? Or is this just a jab at Nvidia to get more competitive pricing?
I think this falls into the NFW category. Take a look at the TPU Inter-Chip Interconnect (ICI):


1764094062912.png


And that Data-Center Network at the top of the diagram? That's Google's all-optical and proprietary Jupiter network:


IMO, there's no way Google sells that network to anyone else, and I can't imagine what field support would look like. So, yes, I think Reuters is wrong. :)

Edit - it just occurred to me that the TPU sales model is in the cloud, or very likely looks a lot like the Cerebras model - no chip selling, just systems. I think Google's solution and the Cerebras solution are equally proprietary.
 
Who me? :rolleyes:

I think this falls into the NFW category. Take a look at the TPU Inter-Chip Interconnect (ICI):


View attachment 3878

And that Data-Center Network at the top of the diagram? That's Google's all-optical and proprietary Jupiter network:


IMO, there's no way Google sells that network to anyone else, and I can't imagine what field support would look like. So, yes, I think Reuters is wrong. :)

Edit - it just occurred to me that the TPU sales model is in the cloud, or very likely looks a lot like the Cerebras model - no chip selling, just systems. I think Google's solution and the Cerebras solution are equally proprietary.
agree, that's why the most likely model is to rent the existing infrastructure for external work load.

As for Google's approach, they are for now the only one deploying OCS in production. Rumors are all hyperscalers are exploring it. this could really give them key leverage in all the different scaling ranges (up/out/across) into the next couple generations.
 
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