Firmus Technologies Wins Prestigious Asia Pacific Data Centre Award

Recognized for Sustainability and Innovation

In a significant achievement, Firmus Technologies, a Singapore-based company, has been awarded the Asia Pacific Data Centre Project of the Year for its groundbreaking AI Factory facility. This recognition highlights the company’s commitment to advanced infrastructure and energy efficiency within the rapidly evolving field of artificial intelligence (AI).

Firmus’s AI Factory is designed to meet the growing demands of AI computing while emphasizing sustainable practices. As businesses and research organizations increasingly rely on intensive computational resources, Firmus aims to address these challenges through innovative technological solutions.

A Step Towards Sustainable AI Computing

The AI Factory is part of a broader strategy by Firmus to convert existing ST Telemedia Global Data Centres (STT GDC) into GPU-powered AI computing platforms. This transformation allows the data centres to leverage sophisticated hardware and efficient cooling systems, thereby meeting the needs of both enterprise customers and researchers.

Energy consumption has become a pressing concern as AI continues to develop. To tackle this issue, Firmus has focused on energy efficiency innovations for nearly a decade. The AI Factory employs advanced immersion cooling technology, which significantly reduces energy use while enhancing computational power.

Key Advantages of the AI Factory

The AI Factory presents several significant benefits:

• Energy Efficiency: The facility achieves 45% more floating-point operations per utility picojoule compared to traditional data centres, setting a new standard for energy use in AI.
• Cost-Effectiveness: The total cost of ownership is reduced by up to 30% compared to conventional direct-to-chip cooling solutions, making it a financially viable option for clients.
• Scalability and Sustainability: The design supports high-density AI workloads while curbing environmental impacts, demonstrating that growth and environmental responsibility can coexist.
• Global Expertise: Firmus brings extensive experience in building and operating immersion-cooled data centres in both Singapore and Australia.

Meeting Singapore’s AI Strategy Goals

The deployment of the AI Factory in Singapore showcases how cutting-edge data centre infrastructure can effectively accommodate the energy demands associated with AI technology. The project aligns with the Singapore National AI Strategy 2.0. This strategy emphasizes sustainable growth in AI while fostering innovation within data centres.

‘By rethinking data centre design, we have created a platform that supports the growth of AI while promoting environmental sustainability,’ said Tim Rosenfield, co-CEO of Firmus Technologies. He noted that if sustainable practices can succeed in Singapore—a location known for its space constraints and humid climate—they can succeed globally.

Leadership Changes and Future Directions

In addition to the award, Firmus has made strategic changes to its leadership team, welcoming Dr. Daniel Kearney as the new Chief Technology Officer. Dr. Kearney, who previously led technology initiatives at AWS for the ASEAN Enterprise sector, will spearhead the engineering team at Firmus. He asserted that sustainable AI infrastructure is crucial as AI technologies grow more powerful.

‘This win against established data centre players recognizes the importance of technology like ours in meeting AI’s growth and the energy challenges it presents,’ said Kearney.

Ongoing Initiatives for Sustainable Innovation

Firmus is also advancing its mission through the Sustainable Metal Cloud (SMC). This initiative aims to enhance AI infrastructure’s efficiency and sustainability, promoting best practices and innovative solutions in the sector.

Recently, Firmus has achieved several important milestones:

• Power Efficiency Benchmarks: The company became the first to publish comprehensive power consumption data along with performance metrics for the MLPerf Training benchmark, setting a benchmark for transparency in the industry.
• Policy Contributions: Insights from Tim Rosenfield have influenced the energy management policy agenda of the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, highlighting the need for responsible energy use in AI.
• Industry Engagement: Firmus’s Chairman, Edward Pretty, recently participated in a panel at the ATxSG24 conference. There, he engaged with representatives from organizations like NVIDIA and the World Bank to discuss sustainability and AI’s computational demands.
• Hypercube Expansion: Firmus has started installing its first fleet of Sustainable AI Factories, known as HyperCubes, in various regions, showcasing their commitment to scalable AI infrastructure.
• Participation in NVIDIA GTC 2024: The firm contributed to the dialogue on sustainable AI infrastructure through two panel discussions at NVIDIA’s GTC event, alongside partners like Deloitte and WEKA.

Key Takeaways and Future Implications

The recognition of Firmus Technologies with the Asia Pacific Data Centre Project of the Year illustrates the importance of innovative approaches in addressing the energy challenges of AI computing. As the demand for AI continues to rise, the need for energy-efficient solutions will only grow. Through its AI Factory and ongoing initiatives, Firmus is well-positioned to lead the charge toward sustainable AI infrastructure.

Future projects may further expand on these principles, potentially serving as a blueprint for data centres worldwide. The industry continues to confront the dual challenge of meeting increasing computational demands while adhering to sustainability goals, making Firmus’s work both timely and essential.

In closing, Firmus Technologies’s achievements set a precedent for the future of AI and data infrastructure. As other firms observe its progress, the hope is for a broader commitment to sustainable practices across the technology landscape.