Transform your AI workloads with FlexPod AI
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Sriram Sagi
In the dynamic world of AI, businesses are continually searching for strong, scalable, and efficient infrastructure solutions to meet their AI and high-performance computing (HPC) requirements. FlexPod® AI, a joint offering from NetApp and Cisco, has become a comprehensive AI-ready stack that combines computing, networking, storage, and software into a unified platform. The addition of the Cisco UCS C885A compute node further boosts the value of FlexPod AI, enabling organizations like yours to expand AI training applications and to use NVIDIA Agent Blueprints in creating advanced AI agents.
The value proposition of FlexPod AI with Cisco UCS C885A
FlexPod AI already delivers a unified platform, and the addition of Cisco UCS C885A rack servers boosts your system performance with:
- High-density GPU servers for intensive workloads. The Cisco UCS C885A is a high-density GPU server that’s designed to handle your compute- and data-intensive use cases. It features eight NVIDIA H100/H200 GPUs or eight AMD Instinct MI300X GPUs.
- AMD 4th or 5th Gen EPYC processors. This powerful configuration makes it ideal for training your large and small models, fine-tuning, large model inferencing, and retrieval-augmented generation (RAG).
- Scalable AI training use cases. You can scale FlexPod AI with the Cisco UCS C885A to meet the demands of various AI training use cases. The infrastructure supports the HPC that you need for AI model training, deep learning, and inferencing.
- NetApp all-flash storage solutions. These solutions are integrated within Cisco Secure AI Factory with NVIDIA to provide high-performance, reliable, and scalable storage for your AI workloads. The use of NetApp all-flash maintains low latency and high throughput, which are critical for the efficient processing and analysis of large datasets in your AI applications. This integration supports the seamless operation of AI and generative AI (GenAI) models, data pipelines, and other AI-driven processes, enhancing your overall system performance and reliability.
Key use cases
FlexPod AI with Cisco UCS C885A is optimal for:
- Training large language models and deep learning algorithms
- Fine-tuning GenAI models
- Performing inferencing and RAG for GenAI models
- Conducting HPC simulations for industries such as energy, healthcare, and genomic research
Seamless integration with AI ecosystems. FlexPod AI provides seamless integration into AI ecosystems, simplifying the deployment and operation of your general-purpose AI workloads. This integration accelerates time to value and speeds up AI implementation, making it easier for you to adopt AI beyond dedicated, large-scale training use cases.
Enhanced AI agent capabilities with NVIDIA Agent Blueprints. FlexPod AI uses NVIDIA Agent Blueprints to build AI agents that can handle a variety of tasks. These blueprints provide predefined configurations and use cases, enabling you to quickly deploy AI agents for specific applications. This capability enhances your overall AI infrastructure, allowing more intelligent and autonomous operations.
Secure AI infrastructure. FlexPod AI is designed with security and sustainability in mind. You get features such as:
- Zero Trust architecture to maintain your data security
- FlexPod security hardening and ransomware protection
- Sustainable AI practices with tools like NetApp ONTAP®, BlueXP™, and Data Infrastructure Insights (formerly Cloud Insights) technologies for efficient data management and reduced environmental impact
Speed innovation with more powerful, secure, and sustainable AI workloads
FlexPod AI with Cisco UCS C885A is a powerful and scalable solution if your enterprise is looking to harness the full potential of AI. With high-density GPU servers, seamless AI ecosystem integration, and advanced AI agent capabilities, FlexPod AI enables your organization to accelerate your AI initiatives while maintaining security and sustainability. Whether it's training large language models, fine-tuning GenAI models, or building sophisticated AI agents, FlexPod AI provides the robust infrastructure that you need to drive innovation and to achieve your business goals.
To learn more about how FlexPod AI and Cisco UCS C885A can help you get the most out of your AI workloads, visit:
Sriram Sagi
Sriram Sagi is a principal product manager for FlexPod. He joined NetApp in 2022 with 15+ years of experience in enterprise products. Before NetApp, Sriram led product and technology teams and shipped multiple products. He has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in engineering and an MBA from Duke University.
