Microsoft Taps Lumen to Boost AI Infrastructure Capacity

Microsoft has partnered with Lumen Technologies to expand its infrastructure capacity to support its growing AI work.

Microsoft will leverage Lumen’s Private Connectivity Fabric (PCF) to enhance its network capabilities, addressing the increasing data center demands driven by AI offerings such as the Azure OpenAI Service.

PCF is a modular network solution that lets users develop custom network architecture. Microsoft will use it to enhance connectivity between its data centers, ensuring its network capacity is stable and fast enough to support workloads for its AI services and applications.

“Lumen has the network infrastructure and the digital capabilities needed to help support Azure’s mission in creating [a] reliable and scalable platform that supports the breadth of customer workloads — from general purpose and mission-critical, to cloud-native, high-performance computing and AI, plus what’s on the horizon,” said Erin Chapple, Microsoft’s corporate vice president for Azure core product and design.

Microsoft is seeing increasing demand for its AI services. The company’s Q2 2024 figures stated that Azure AI serves more than 53,000 customers, with more than one-third being new to Azure over the past 12 months.

Nicole Dezen, Microsoft’s chief partner officer wrote in March that the company has seen a 250% increase in the number of generative AI-related partners since July 2023.

Related:Microsoft, Meta, Google Launch New AI Connectivity Standard for Data Centers

To support its AI workloads, Microsoft is planning to expand the number of its data centers, including building new sites in France.

Bringing in Lumen as a strategic supplier for its network infrastructure needs enables Microsoft to further evolve and scale its data center ecosystem.

The partnership will also see Lumen leverage Microsoft’s cloud and AI technologies to support its digital transformation.

Lumen will migrate and modernize its workloads to Microsoft Azure and leverage Microsoft Entra solutions to safeguard network access.

The pair are also set to create and offer industry-specific solutions for the telecom sector, an aspect of the partnership they claim will improve Lumen’s cash flow by more than $20 million over the next 12 months.

“We are preparing for a future where AI is the driving force of innovation and growth and where a powerful network infrastructure is essential for companies to thrive,” said Kate Johnson, Lumen’s president and CEO. “Microsoft has an ambitious vision for AI and this level of innovation requires a network that can make it reality. Lumen’s expansive network meets this challenge, with unique routes, unmatched coverage and a digital platform built to give companies the flexibility, access and security they need to create an AI-enabled world.

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This story first appeared in IoT World Today's sister publication AI Business.