News: Microelectronics
11 March 2024
Navitas unveils plans for 8–10kW power platform supporting 2025 AI power requirements
Gallium nitride (GaN) power IC and silicon carbide (SiC) technology firm Navitas Semiconductor Corp of Torrance, CA, USA has announced its artificial intelligence (AI) data center technology roadmap for to up to 3x power increase to support similar exponential growth in AI power demands expected in just the next 12–18 months.
Traditional CPUs require typically only 300W and the data-center AC/DC power supplies would typically power the equivalent of 10 of these or 3000W (3kW). High-performance AI processors like NVIDIA’s ‘Grace Hopper’ H100 are already demanding 700W each, with next-generation ‘Blackwell’ B100 and B200 chips expected to increase to 1000W or more by next year. To meet this exponential power increase, Navitas is developing server power platforms that rapidly increase from 3kW to up to 10kW. In August 2023, Navitas introduced a 3.2kW data-center power platform utilizing the latest GaN technology enabling over 100W/in3 and over 96.5% efficiency. Now, Navitas is releasing a 4.5kW platform enabled by a combination of GaN and SiC to push densities over 130W/in3 and efficiencies over 97%. These two platforms have already generated significant market interest, says Navitas, with over 20 data-center customer projects in development expected to drive millions in GaN or SiC revenues, starting this year.
Now, Navitas is also announcing its plans to introduce an 8–10kW power platform by the end of 2024 to support 2025 AI power requirements. The platform will utilize newer GaN and SiC technologies and further advances in architecture to set all-new industry standards in power density, efficiency and time-to-market, the firm reckons. Navitas is already engaged with major data-center customers, with full platform launch anticipated in fourth-quarter 2024, completing this 3x increase in power demands in only 12–18 months.
Navitas says that its unique data-center design center is creating these system designs to address the dramatic increases in AI data-center power requirements, and assist customers to deploy platforms quickly and effectively to meet the accelerated time-to-market demands of rapid AI advances. System designs include complete design collateral with fully tested hardware, schematics, bill-of-materials, layout, simulation and hardware test results to maximize first-time-right designs and fast revenue generation.
“The rapid development and deployment of artificial intelligence into global data centers has created a dramatic and unexpected power challenge for our entire industry,” notes CEO & co-founder Gene Sheridan. “Our investment in leading-edge GaN and SiC technologies, combined with our unique data-center design center capabilities, have positioned us well,” he reckons.
Navitas celebrates tenth anniversary
Navitas ranked top 50 in Forbes’ 2024 Most Successful Small Companies
