NVIDIA has announced it is collaborating with Hon Hai Technology Group (Foxconn) to accelerate the AI industrial revolution.

Particularly, Foxconn will integrate NVIDIA technology to develop a new class of data centers powering a wide range of applications. Moreover, encompasses the digitalization of manufacturing and inspection workflows, the development of AI-powered electric vehicle, and robotics platforms. It will also cover a growing number of language-based generative AI services.

The two companies sealed the alliance during the fireside chat with NVIDIA founder and CEO Jensen Huang and Foxconn Chairman and CEO Young Liu at Hon Hai Tech Day, in Taipei. Furthermore, the collaboration started with the creation of AI factories, an NVIDIA® GPU computing infrastructure specially built for processing, refining and transforming vast amounts of data into valuable AI models and tokens. These will be based on the NVIDIA accelerated computing platform, including the latest NVIDIA GH200 Grace Hopper™ Superchip and NVIDIA AI Enterprise software.

Emergence of New Type of Manufacturing

Foxconn is also developing its smart solution platforms based on NVIDIA technologies. Namely, the Foxconn Smart EV will be built on NVIDIA DRIVE Hyperion™ 9, a next-generation platform for autonomous automotive fleets.

The NVIDIA DRIVE Thor™, the future automotive systems-on-a-chip, will power the platform. Next, the Foxconn Smart Manufacturing robotic systems will be built on the NVIDIA Isaac™ autonomous mobile robot platform.

Finally, the Foxconn Smart City will incorporate the NVIDIA Metropolis intelligent video analytics platform.

“Most importantly, NVIDIA and Foxconn are building these factories together. We will be helping the whole industry move much faster into the new AI era,” said Foxconn Chairman and CEO Young Liu.

On the other hand, Huang said, “A new type of manufacturing has emerged — the production of intelligence. And the data centers that produce it are AI factories.”

“Foxconn, the world’s largest manufacturer, has the expertise and scale to build AI factories globally. We are delighted to expand our decade-long partnership with Foxconn to accelerate the AI industrial revolution.”

Enabling Foxconn Customers to Build AI Data Factories

Working closely with NVIDIA, Foxconn is likely to build a large number of systems based on NVIDIA CPUs, GPUs, and networking. Particularly, for its global customer base, which is looking to create and operate their own AI factories. These factories will be optimized with NVIDIA AI Enterprise software.

Foxconn will be using NVIDIA technologies to create these custom designs. Among them, the NVIDIA HGX™ reference designs featuring eight NVIDIA H100 Tensor Core GPUs per system, NVIDIA GH200 Superchips, NVIDIA OVX™ reference designs and NVIDIA networking.

With these systems, Foxconn customers can leverage NVIDIA accelerated computing to deliver generative AI services. In addition, use simulation to speed up the training of autonomous machines, including industrial robots, and self-driving cars.

Foxconn Eyes Potential AI Factory

In addition to equipping its customers with NVIDIA technology-powered AI factories, Foxconn is eyeing its own. Most importantly, tapping into the NVIDIA Omniverse™ platform and Isaac and Metropolis frameworks to meet the strict production and quality standards of the electronics industry.

Advances in edge AI and simulation are enabling the deployment of autonomous mobile robots. That is, traveling several miles a day. Also, industrial robots for assembling components, applying coatings, packaging and performing quality inspections.

An AI factory with these NVIDIA platforms can give Foxconn the ability to accomplish AI training and inference. At the same time, to enhance factory workflows and to run simulations in the virtual world before deployment. Simulating the entire robotics and automation pipeline from end to end provides Foxconn with a path to operational efficiency gains, saving time and costs.

Developing Safe, AI-Powered EVs

Foxconn will also deliver a range of NVIDIA DRIVE™ solutions to global automakers. Particularly, serving as a tier-one manufacturer of NVIDIA DRIVE Orin™-based electronic control units (ECUs) today. Moreover, scaling to NVIDIA DRIVE Thor-based ECUs in the future.

As a contract manufacturer, Foxconn will offer highly automated and autonomous, AI-rich EVs featuring the upcoming NVIDIA DRIVE Hyperion 9 platform. This includes DRIVE Thor and a state-of-the-art sensor architecture. Finally, this will enable Foxconn and its automotive customers to realize a new era of functionally safe and secure software-defined cars.