VMware acquires Bitfusion to virtualize hardware accelerators

VMware has unveiled its plan to acquire the US-based startup Bitfusion to help enterprises more efficiently use artificial intelligence (AI) on-premises and in hybrid cloud environments.Founded in 2015, Bitfusion provides virtualization software for AI infrastructure, with a strong focus on GPU technology.Hardware accelerators like GPUs (graphic processor units), FPGAs (field-programmable gate arrays), and ASICs (application-specific integrated circuits) provide efficiency and flexibility into the AI space. But the hardware accelerators generally used are deployed with bare-metal practices, which aren’t much efficient. Virtualizing the hardware accelerators can speed up the sharing of resources and optimize costs.With Bitfusion acquisition, VMware will be well-positioned to support AI workloads by virtualizing hardware accelerators. Its solution brings more sophisticated management by “sharing of graphics card resources between isolated GPU workloads.