- AI Infrastructure Investment: Dell, HPE, Cisco, NetApp, and Pure Storage are collaborating with NVIDIA to build essential AI infrastructure, focusing on servers, storage, and security.
- Server Growth Opportunities: Dell and HPE unveiled new servers featuring NVIDIA GPUs, positioning both companies for strong growth in the AI business.
- AI’s Impact on Storage: NetApp and Pure Storage are positioning to capitalize on the growing demand for high-performance storage to support AI applications.
As AI continues to revolutionize industries, the 2025 NVIDIA GPU Technology Conference (GTC) has emerged as a cornerstone event, unveiling groundbreaking collaborations that are set to redefine the AI infrastructure landscape.
Hosted by NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA), the conference highlighted updates on partnerships with leading IT vendors, including Cisco Systems, Inc (NASDAQ: CSCO), Dell Technologies Inc (NYSE: DELL), Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (NYSE: HPE), NetApp, Inc (NASDAQ: NTAP), and Pure Storage, Inc (NYSE: PSTG).
While NVIDIA’s partners typically enjoy the “halo effect” of collaborating with a tech giant—benefiting from increased visibility and credibility—the immediate impact on stock prices in 2025 may not mirror the gains seen in 2024. Below, we break down the major updates and what they mean for investors and the industry.
1. Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO)
- Partnership Updates: Cisco and NVIDIA are partnering to strengthen the security of AI systems, helping organizations mitigate risks like data leakage and compliance issues. For example, Cisco’s Hybrid Mesh Firewall will eventually extend zero-trust security across all AI nodes by integrating with NVIDIA BlueField-3 DPUs.
- Investment Outlook: The collaboration positions both companies for growth in the AI and cybersecurity markets, as businesses demand secure, high-performance AI infrastructure. This integration could be an underappreciated opportunity, with long-term potential for investors.
2. Dell Technologies (NYSE: DELL)
- Partnership Updates: Dell has announced new servers featuring advanced NVIDIA GPUs, including the PowerEdge server with 72 Blackwell Ultra GPUs and the liquid-cooled PowerEdge XE8712 with the GB200 NVL4 platform. Dell also announced the integration of Nvidia’s AI Data Platform into its PowerScale storage solutions.
- Investment Outlook: Dell is expected to see strong growth in its AI business, with projected sales of $15 billion in FY2026. This positions Dell well for long-term success in the AI market, though there is some risk of margin pressure.
3. Hewlett Packard Enterprise (NYSE: HPE)
- Partnership Updates: HPE unveiled new servers featuring NVIDIA GPUs, including the GB300 NVL72 with 72 Blackwell Ultra GPUs and HPE’s liquid cooling, ProLiant Compute XD servers with Blackwell Ultra B300 GPUs, and ProLiant Compute DL384b Gen12 with Grace Blackwell B200 GPUs. Additionally, NVIDIA’s AI Data Platform is integrated into HPE’s Private Cloud AI platform, optimized for NVIDIA AI-Q Blueprints and NIM microservices.
- Investment Outlook: Our research partner estimates HPE’s AI server business will grow 8% in 2025, with a stronger 33% growth in 2026. Though AI platform sales were weak, impacted by excess Hopper GPUs inventory, recovery is expected contingent on receiving Blackwell GPUs from NVIDIA.
4. NetApp (NASDAQ: NTAP)
- Partnership Updates: NetApp’s enterprise storage systems are now validated for NVIDIA’s AI Data Platform, including the NetApp AFF A90, which is certified for high-performance storage for NVIDIA Cloud Partners with NVIDIA HGX Systems.
- Investment Outlook: AI remains a small portion of NetApp’s sales, but management believes AI-related wins will grow, especially as enterprise AI adoption drives a storage refresh. NetApp is well-positioned in both on-premises and cloud storage markets.
5. Pure Storage (NYSE: PSTG)
- Partnership Updates: Pure Storage’s platforms now support NVIDIA’s AI Data Platform and are certified as high-performance storage for NVIDIA Cloud Partner. The company has also achieved Nvidia Storage Partner certification, emphasizing its optimized AI capabilities for enterprises leveraging NVIDIA’s tools to build and deploy AI factories.
- Investment Outlook: These certifications should improve Pure Storage’s ability to attract hyperscale and cloud operators, as well as capitalize on the long-term trend of AI adoption by enterprises, creating a significant expansion of its total addressable market.
What’s Important for Investors?
- Companies are preparing for the next wave of AI, which is expected to be huge for data processing and storage.
- Dell, HPE, and Cisco Systems are all working on powerful servers and cloud infrastructure to run AI efficiently.
- Storage is a key factor—companies like NetApp and Pure Storage are focusing on how AI requires vast amounts of data to be stored and accessed quickly.
- AI is no longer just about training models; it’s about running them in real-world applications (inference), and all these companies are making moves to support that shift.
The AI boom is undeniably on the horizon, and companies building the infrastructure—servers, storage, and security— will likely see growth. However, it’s important to watch how these companies manage the supply of GPUs and other hardware, as well as market demand.
Disclaimer: Hailey Chung, Manager of Content at ProsperUs, does not own shares of any companies mentioned.
