“I Want to Build the AI of the Internet,” Says Alex Yeh as GMI Cloud Becomes 2025’s Next Big Thing

“I see artificial intelligence as the 21st century’s latest ‘gold rush,’ with GPUs and AI servers serving as the ‘pickaxes’ for modern-day ‘prospectors,'” says Alex Yeh, founder and CEO of GMI Cloud.This vision guided the inception of GMI Cloud, a San Jose-based company founded in 2021. Originally focused on operating data centers for Bitcoin computing nodes, GMI Cloud pivoted in response to a growing demand for GPU computing power. Today, the company plays a pivotal role in the rapidly evolving AI landscape, delivering high-performance GPU solutions that empower enterprises to scale their AI initiatives efficiently.

Over its first two years, the company established three data centers in Arkansas and Texas, solidifying its presence in the blockchain sector. However, as CEO Alex Yeh observed, the winds of technological demand were shifting.

“I noticed growing demand for GPU computing power from investors and clients,” Yeh shared in an interview. By June 2023, the decision to pivot towards AI cloud infrastructure was made, a bold move that realigned GMI Cloud with the burgeoning opportunities presented by artificial intelligence. This strategic shift allowed the company to leverage its existing infrastructure and expertise to address the surging demand for GPU resources essential for AI and machine learning applications.

Building the Backbone of AI Innovation

Central to GMI Cloud’s offerings is its proprietary Cluster Engine, a cloud-native resource management platform seamlessly integrated with advanced hardware. This platform optimizes workloads for AI and ML applications, offering unparalleled capabilities in virtualization, containerization, and orchestration. Through this technology, businesses can efficiently scale their AI initiatives without long-term contracts or significant upfront investments.

The company’s portfolio includes:

• GPU Cloud Solutions: Access to NVIDIA GPUs for training, inference, and deployment of AI models.
• End-to-End AI Solutions: Comprehensive consulting services for model training, fine-tuning, and scaling—a service rarely provided by competitors.
• On-Demand GPU Cloud Product: Flexible, instant access to top-tier GPUs like NVIDIA’s H200, addressing the barriers of high costs and long lead times faced by many organizations.

Yeh’s vision extends beyond infrastructure. “Our ultimate goal is to make building AI applications as simple and streamlined as building a website on Wix or Shopify,” he says. This approach reflects GMI Cloud’s aspiration to democratize AI development, enabling businesses of all sizes to harness the power of advanced computing.

GMI Cloud’s ability to meet growing demand is bolstered by strategic alliances with key industry players. Partnerships with Realtek Semiconductor, VAST Data, and UbiOps enhance its supply chain capabilities, data throughput, and end-to-end deployment solutions. Moreover, its collaboration with NVIDIA as part of the Cloud Service Provider Program underscores its commitment to leveraging cutting-edge GPU technology.

“We are the first NVIDIA Certified Partner (NCP) in Taiwan,” Yeh notes, highlighting GMI Cloud’s unique position in the global supply chain. By operating data centers in Taiwan, Thailand, and Malaysia, the company achieves shorter lead times and lower costs compared to competitors based in the U.S., ensuring reliable and efficient delivery of GPU resources.

GMI Cloud operates a global network of data centers spanning the United States, Taiwan, Thailand, and Malaysia, serving industries such as healthcare, research, and telecom. With plans to increase its workforce to 70 by year-end, the company continues to invest in its vertically integrated AI platform.

GMI Cloud’s team of AI and HPC experts, with experience from Google X, Alibaba Cloud, and Supermicro, holds over 30 AI-related patents. Their expertise ensures the seamless deployment of AI models, optimized for performance and cost-efficiency.

November 2024 marked a significant milestone for GMI Cloud as it secured $82 million in Series A funding, consisting of $15 million in equity and $67 million in debt financing. Led by Headline Asia, with participation from Banpu Next and Wistron Corporation, the funding aims to expand GMI Cloud’s operations, including the establishment of a new data center in Colorado.

This facility will complement existing centers in North America and Asia, enabling GMI Cloud to cater to a global client base across industries such as healthcare, research, and telecommunications. The company also plans to grow its workforce to 60-70 employees by year-end, further enhancing its capacity to deliver AI solutions.

Technical Excellence with NVIDIA H200 GPUs

GMI Cloud has positioned itself as an early adopter of NVIDIA’s H200 Tensor Core GPUs, which represent a significant leap in performance and efficiency. Internal benchmarks conducted by GMI Cloud demonstrated over a 45% improvement in throughput compared to the H100, particularly for large-scale models like Llama 3.1. Features such as 1.1TB of HBM3e memory and 4.8 TB/s bandwidth make the H200 an indispensable tool for businesses managing extensive AI workloads.

By integrating these GPUs into its infrastructure, GMI Cloud provides clients with enhanced processing times, reduced operational costs, and improved energy efficiency—a crucial consideration in today’s environmentally conscious market.

The AI industry’s rapid growth has created a fragmented landscape of hardware and software providers. GMI Cloud’s vertically integrated approach addresses this challenge by offering a total solution, from GPU cloud services to virtualization and application layers. This model simplifies adoption for companies, enabling them to focus on innovation rather than navigating complex infrastructure requirements.

“The largest and most innovative tech companies leverage hardware to scale their businesses,” Yeh asserts. “Vertical integration down to the hardware level is how legendary businesses are built.”

GMI Cloud is not merely a provider of infrastructure but an enabler of innovation. As generative AI and real-time inference applications proliferate, the company’s commitment to flexibility, reliability, and scalability positions it as a valuable partner for enterprises worldwide. By reducing barriers to entry and offering tailored solutions, GMI Cloud aligns itself with the future of AI—one that emphasizes accessibility and transformative potential.

With its foundation firmly rooted in hardware expertise and a vision for a democratized AI landscape, GMI Cloud exemplifies the spirit of Silicon Valley innovation. As Yeh aptly puts it, “I want to build the infrastructure that powers the future across the world.”