Intel launches security-centric gen AI venture

It has teamed up with private equity firm DigitalBridge to launch Articul8, which will offer corporate customers a full-stack, vertically-optimised, and secure gen AI software platform.

Designed to run on Intel hardware, including its Xeon processors and Gaudi AI accelerators, Articul8 wants to enable enterprises to harness the capabilities of genAI without jeopardising sensitive corporate data.

A Gartner survey in October identified genAI as the top priority for the c-suite, predicting that more than 80 percent of organisations will use it in one form or another by 2026.

The same report also highlighted AI trust, risk and security management (TRiM) as an emerging innovation that is expected to have a significant influence over enterprise AI adoption over the next decade.

Indeed, while enterprises are enthusiastic about AI, they are also wary about potentially exposing their data. This issue made headlines last May, when Samsung banned staff from using ChatGPT after it emerged that employees were using it to troubleshoot proprietary code and summarise internal meeting notes, leading to confidential information being made public.

With Articul8, Intel says it can deliver AI capabilities that keep customer data, training and inference within a client's security perimeter. It can be deployed in the cloud, on-prem, or in a hybrid environment.

"With its deep AI and HPC (high-performance computing) domain knowledge and enterprise-grade genAI deployments, Articul8 is well positioned to deliver tangible business outcomes for Intel and our broader ecosystem of customers and partners. As Intel accelerates AI everywhere, we look forward to our continued collaboration with Articul8," said Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger.

The launch of Articul8 follows extensive trials by Intel in collaboration with Boston Consulting Group (BCG).

"Our collaboration began nearly two years ago while the venture was still in the incubation stage at Intel," said Rich Lesser, global chair of BCG. "Since then, we have deployed Articul8 products for multiple clients seeking production-ready platforms with rapid time to market."

Last May, BCG revealed it had used Intel's AI hardware to create a foundation model with access to more than 50 years of highly-confidential and proprietary data. It then developed a custom chatbot that enabled staff to retrieve and summarise information using semantic search.

Compared to keyword search, BCG staff reported a 41 percent increase in satisfaction, a 25 percent improvement in result relevancy, and a 39 percent increase in improved work completion rates using the genAI solution.

With Articul8, Intel aims to offer these benefits to a wider audience, and with involvement from DigitalBridge, it can share the cost of scaling it up into a standalone business. Other investors include Fin Capital, Mindset Ventures, Communitas Capital, GiantLeap Capital, GS Futures and Zain Group.

In terms of industry verticals, it has set its sights on those that require high levels of security and specialised knowledge, including financial services, aerospace, semiconductors and telecommunications.

"Articul8 has built a scalable and easy-to-deploy genAI software platform that is already enabling enterprises to unlock value from their proprietary data," said Marc Ganzi, CEO of DigitalBridge. "We see genAI as a pivotal force driving digital infrastructure, and we are pleased to collaborate with Intel to support Articul8's growth."