Graphcore is hiring once more after its SoftBank acquisition — however what do the roles inform us about its future focus?

Recruitment drive would improve Graphcore’s headcount by 20%
Announcement marks first massive strikes since SoftBank acquisition
Roles obtainable in silicon design, software program, and infrastructure

Graphcore has introduced plans for a recent hiring drive simply months after its landmark acquisition by SoftBank.

The British AI chip producer introduced it has 75 open positions spanning a variety of enterprise features, together with silicon design, knowledge middle infrastructure administration, {hardware} engineering, and AI analysis.

“Whether or not your experience is in silicon, techniques, software program, AI analysis or any of the opposite features that we’re increasing, it is a probability to work on the modern of your area,” stated CEO Nigel Toon.

Graphcore hiring spree

The recruitment marketing campaign represents a 20% improve in Graphcore’s total workforce, and can embrace positions in any respect of its international workplaces.

The corporate at present has websites in Bristol, Cambridge, and London within the UK, together with workplaces in Gdansk, Poland, and Hsinchu Metropolis, Taiwan.

Graphcore was acquired by SoftBank in July 2024 in a deal described by Toon as a “great endorsement” for the corporate. As a part of the deal, the corporate grew to become a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Japanese funding financial institution.

Whereas monetary terms of the acquisition had been undisclosed, it’s believed the deal was valued at round $600 million, representing a major markdown on its 2020 valuation of round $2.5 billion.

Toon described the deal as a “great endorsement” for the corporate and stated the acquisition is a “nice consequence”.

What does the transfer say about Graphcore future plans?

In its announcement, Graphcore stated the transfer builds on a pledge to “proceed to spend money on the creation of high-skilled jobs spanning a variety of disciplines” within the wake of its acquisition.

The open positions do level towards its potential future plans, nevertheless, notably with regard to chip design. Of the 75 roles Graphcore is recruiting for, 10 of those alone are in Silicon engineering design, suggesting the corporate plans to ramp up improvement of its subsequent technology chip vary.

Graphcore at present boasts three generations of silicon, with its most up-to-date – the Bow Intelligence Processing Unit (IPU) – launched in 2022. The Bow IPU delivers as much as 350 teraflops of AI compute, and boasts a 40% improve in efficiency and 16% energy effectivity in comparison with the corporate’s earlier technology IPU.

Nonetheless, in contrast to different processors obtainable in the marketplace, Graphcore’s IPUs don’t use Excessive Bandwidth Reminiscence (HBM) know-how. As a substitute, they depend on inner SRAM.

Competitor chips do use HBM although, together with Intel, AMD and Nvidia.

With a raft of positions obtainable in its silicon design division, this begs the query of whether or not Graphcore may shake up its design to incorporate HBM capabilities.

Equally, marketed roles in its infrastructure options and software program departments can also level towards a change of tack for Graphcore, maybe with its concentrate on knowledge middle capabilities sharpening.

It wouldn’t be alone right here, both. Nvidia gives its personal software program and infrastructure choices for AI inferencing. This has been essential in its fast ascendance all through the generative AI increase.

AMD has additionally centered closely by itself knowledge middle phase lately to maintain tempo with Nvidia.