AMD Acquires AI Infrastructure Company ZT Systems for $4.9 Billion

AMD is looking to expand its offerings to large-scale AI and data center clients with its latest multi-billion-dollar acquisition. The company has announced it’s buying ZT Systems, which it describes as “a leading provider of AI and general purpose compute infrastructure for the world’s largest hyperscale providers.” The move by AMD will add more tools to its toolbox as it seeks to expand its offerings in the lucrative AI market and be more competitive with Nvidia.

The company said the $4.9 billion acquisition includes cash and stock. AMD says ZT Systems has experience designing and optimizing cloud computing solutions for companies. By adding the company’s expertise to its portfolio, AMD will be more of a “one-stop shop” for companies looking to expand their AI offerings. It will let AMD sell its hardware to a company and help it scale its cloud computing and data center operations. CEO Lisa Su describes the deal as allowing AMD to sell an “end-to-end” data center solution at scale.

AMD’s is looking to expand its AI offerings to rack-scale products, possibly similar to Nvidia’s NVL72 cabinet shown here..
Credit: Nvidia

AMD says the deal is part of its long-term strategy to be the industry leader in AI inference and large language model training, where it currently trails Nvidia by a considerable margin. AMD says the deal will accelerate the deployment of “rack-scale” offerings instead of just selling individual boards, even in massive quantities. According to Marketwatch, at least one analyst believes the move by AMD validates Nvidia’s approach thus far, in that it will be offering its upcoming Blackwell chips in full 72-chip racks as well as scaled-up AI “super pods” that are essentially an entire data center for AI.

The move by AMD is also part of a new trend for the company whereby it’s begun dumping billions into its AI ambitions. The company states it has invested more than $1 billion into its AI ecosystem and software in the past year, and it also paid $665 million last month to buy a company named Silo AI, which helps companies integrate AI into its products. AMD’s stock was up 2% on the news, giving investors confidence that AMD was making the right moves in its never-ending battle against Nvidia.