Tesla has made the decision to shut down its Dojo supercomputer, a move that has significant implications for the company’s AI development efforts. The Dojo supercomputer was instrumental in training the algorithms that power Tesla’s advanced driving assistance systems, such as Autopilot, as well as the Optimus humanoid robot.
The data center housing the Dojo supercomputer utilized custom-built chips known as D1 to train artificial intelligence for driving assistance systems and the Optimus robot. The supercomputer was estimated to add a substantial $500 billion to Tesla’s overall value.
According to reports from Bloomberg and confirmation from Tesla CEO Elon Musk, the company is shifting away from in-house development for AI solutions. Instead, Tesla is looking to collaborate with external partners like Nvidia, AMD, and Samsung for its AI development needs.
As part of the shutdown of the Dojo supercomputer project, Peter Bannon, the team leader, will be leaving the company. Other team members will be reassigned to different data centers and compute projects within Tesla. This move aligns with Musk’s earlier hints during a quarterly earnings call about potentially discontinuing the Dojo supercomputer in favor of working more closely with external partners.
Despite the discontinuation of the Dojo project, Tesla remains committed to its AI-powered ambitions. The company is currently working on a larger and more advanced supercomputer called Cortex, which is under construction in Austin, Texas. The Cortex supercomputer will be powered by over 100,000 Nvidia H100 and H200 chips and is part of Tesla’s ongoing efforts to bring unsupervised Full Self-Driving technology to market.
In addition to the Cortex supercomputer, Tesla has also entered into a $16.5 billion deal with Samsung to secure AI semiconductors for its AI6 architecture. This partnership includes the construction of a factory in Texas to produce the chips locally. The current generation of vehicle hardware chips, AI4, is also produced by Samsung, while the upcoming AI5 units will be sourced from TSMC.
Overall, despite the shutdown of the Dojo supercomputer project, Tesla’s AI training cluster continues to expand. The company is dedicated to advancing its autonomous driving technology and bringing innovative solutions to the market. With ongoing partnerships and investments in AI development, Tesla is poised to remain at the forefront of the automotive industry’s AI revolution.