Broadcom is placing a significant bet on Ethernet as the technology to drive AI infrastructure networking. According to Ram Velaga, SVP and GM of the Core Switching Group at Broadcom, Ethernet is the way forward for AI networking due to its pervasive deployment, open and standards-based nature, high RDMA performance, low cost, consistency, and high availability and reliability.
Velaga emphasizes that Ethernet is well-suited to support large-scale deployments, such as connecting tens of thousands of GPUs. He also notes that proprietary technologies like NVIDIA's InfiniBand are expensive, fragile, and predicated on flawed assumptions about physical infrastructure.
In contrast, Broadcom's Ethernet-based solutions offer scalability and flexibility, with a large ecosystem of silicon, hardware, software, automation, monitoring, and debugging solutions. Broadcom has partnered with Dell Technologies to deliver AI connectivity solutions, providing complete clusters for customers.
Their collaboration aims to enable next-gen AI technologies with robust, efficient, and scalable infrastructure. By leveraging Ethernet's strengths, Broadcom is positioning itself as a key player in the rapidly evolving AI landscape.
