Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI strongly believes in two things. First is that compute, not fiat or bitcoin, will be the ‘currency of the future’
Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI strongly believes in two things. First is that compute, not fiat or bitcoin, will be the ‘currency of the future’ and second is that access to computing infrastructure is the single biggest gating factor for the proliferation of AI.
Challenges in Computing Infrastructure:
At the moment, the problem with computing infrastructure is that it is:
- Very expensive: Minimum US$5 million investment for any company looking to own hardware.
- Hard to find: Nvidia tightly controls the distribution of their GPUs.
- Long lead time: Can take 6 to 9 months from the purchase order to receive the hardware due to significant demand.
- Highly Specialized: Each use case requires unique technical specifications.
The Solution to AI Infrastructure Challenges
Luckily Alset Capital, a newly trading public Company (TSXV:KSUM) (OTC:ALSCF) (FSE:1R60, WKN – A3ESVQ), could be the solution to all these challenges, which is why it has been attracting considerable investor interest. Alset owns a portfolio of companies working on advancing Artificial Intelligence, specifically providing access to the world’s most advanced AI GPUs and liquid cooling technology.
Cedarcross International Technologies Inc:
Alset’s 49% owned investee company, Cedarcross International Technologies Inc. is a pure-play high-performance Artificial Intelligence cloud computing hardware provider. Cedarcross provides access to the world’s fastest AI servers: NVIDIA’s H100 HGX GPUs. These servers are housed in Tier 3 data centres across North America. It brokers and leases computing power to enterprise clients in real time, without the upfront costs and long-term maintenance of physical infrastructure giving clients cost-effective options to tap into AI’s potential $15.7 trillion USD global economic impact.
Vertex AI Ventures:
Apart from Cedarcross, Alset also has a 49% interest in Vertex AI Ventures, a company focused on identifying, acquiring, and licensing (IP) and providing AI data management services.
“Alset Capital’s recent contracts and strategic positioning underscore its potential to become an integral player in the AI cloud computing infrastructure space. The company’s rapid revenue growth and high gross margins are indicators of its strong market presence and future growth prospects.”
Strategic Partnerships and Market Positioning
Supplier Relationships:
The Company has established close relationships with suppliers for Nvidia Hardware, who offer attractive pricing and expedited delivery times. These include Alset’s relationship with Earthmade Computer Corp., an authorized distributor for Super Micro Computer, Inc. (NASDAQ:SMCI) Hardware, which allows Cedarcross access to industry-low pricing (30% discount) and shortened lead times for Nvidia H100 Server hardware delivery (under 3 months vs Industry Avg. 6 to 9 months).
Recent Deals:
This unique value proposition has resonated well with the market and opened a massive opportunity for the Company, as illustrated by Alset’s two most recent deals:
Financial Performance and Growth Potential
Revenue Highlights:
Of note, as shown above in the news releases, on May 16, Cedarcross signed an agreement to distribute 64 Nvidia H100 HGX 8GPU servers, which generated $26 million in revenue and an estimated $2.3 million in gross margins.
Following the initial distribution agreement announced on April 22, 2024, this agreement marks a significant advancement in Cedarcross’ distribution capabilities within the high-performance computing (HPC) server market. Cedarcross has now secured cumulative revenue year to date of approximately $28 million through its HPC server distribution business vertical alone.
Market Demand and Strategic Positioning
AI Computing Leasing Agreement:
In addition to that, Cedarcross entered into the two-year AI Computing leasing agreement on April 25, 2024. The agreement is expected to generate approximately CAD$5.5 million in total revenue, with an aggregate gross margin of approximately CAD$4.4 million over the contract’s duration.
Under the terms of the agreement, Cedarcross will provide approximately 700,000 compute hours annually, totaling 1.4 million AI compute hours. These agreements underscore the robust demand and strategic market positioning of Cedarcross in the HPC landscape.
Expanding Capabilities and Strategic Partnerships
Turnkey Solutions:
In addition to computing capacity, customers are increasingly seeking turnkey solutions to streamline infrastructure complexities, and the Company is set to meet this demand by offering Platform as a Service (PaaS) solutions tailored to enhance product efficiency for its clients. That is why Alset’s investee, Vertex AI Ventures Inc. (“Vertex AI Ventures”), entered into a strategic AI data engineering and automation partnership with Nom Nom AI Inc.
Nom Nom AI Partnership:
Nom Nom is a pioneer in data engineering, security, and automation as a service. Their knowledge and expertise provide innovative solutions that leverage artificial intelligence to streamline operations, reduce operational and capital expenses, and ensure businesses maintain a competitive edge in today’s data-rich environment. With data volumes reaching unprecedented levels, the demand for sophisticated analytics and scalable solutions has never been more urgent.
Nom Nom’s expertise in managing, integrating, and automating vast datasets positions them as a cornerstone in the evolving landscape of data management and artificial intelligence. Nom Nom seamlessly integrates our hardware with their software capabilities, granting clients comprehensive access to data insights through their user-friendly interface. Through the Company’s investee company Vertex AI Ventures, clients also gain an intuitive interface that enhances their understanding of data.
The Future of AI and Cloud Computing Infrastructure
Industry Trends and Energy Considerations:
The need for AI cloud computing infrastructure will likely not be able to keep up with the growing demand, which explains why major institutional capital is flowing into the sector. At least $500+ billion investment in servers and data centers is required, and major PE firms are investing billions in hardware and infrastructure to support the $175 Billion Annual Cloud AI Market in the US alone.
To better illustrate the extent of opportunities in the sector, consider this. Sam Altman, is the chairman of a nuclear power company called Oklo, which recently went public via a SPAC that raised about USD$306 million.
Nuclear Energy and AI:
So what does Oklo have to do with cloud computing and AI? At current growth rates, researchers have estimated that some new AI servers could soon gobble up more than 85 terawatt hours of electricity each year—more than some small nations’ annual energy consumption. Oklo is working to build a small-scale nuclear powerhouse that could fuel data centers like the ones OpenAI and its competitors need. Altman said that he sees nuclear energy as one of the best ways to solve the problem of growing demand for AI and the energy that powers the technology, without relying on fossil fuels. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos have also invested in nuclear plants in recent years. Powering datacenters is just one example of how companies are capitalizing on the opportunity in the demand for critical HPC infrastructure.
Alset’s Strategic Advantage:
Alset believes it is well-positioned to benefit from this opportunity, especially considering that the U.S. Department of Commerce imposed export restrictions on the sale of more advanced AI chips, including Nvidia’s H100s. Alset currently has a market capitalization of about US$24.4 million despite the fact its HPC distribution business has already generated approximately C$28 million cumulative top-line revenue in the last few weeks as it fully launched the business.
Furthermore, its compute leasing business is expected to generate C$5.5 million in gross revenue, with expected gross margin of 80%. Alset is a unique standalone pure-play in the sector focused on the untapped small and medium-sized businesses needs. However, it is worth noting that Nvidia is currently valued at about 37x its ttm sales while the technology sector average is valued at about 29.2x ttm sales. This implies that Alset has the potential to significantly increase its valuation to the upside if it continues to execute on this business model and maximizes execution.
A Promising Future for Alset Capital
Trading and Investor Accessibility:
The Company also hopes to attract more investor interest after it recently commenced trading on the OTC Market under the symbol “ALSCF,” effective April 26, 2024, in addition to receiving DTC eligibility. This will allow the stock to be more easily traded by and accessible to US institutional and retail investors. The Company now trades on three Exchanges (TSXV:KSUM) (OTC:ALSCF) (FSE:1R60 – WKN:A3ESVQ).
For more information, please visit the company’s website at alsetai.com.
Article by: Financial Gambits
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