The collaboration focuses on the areas of machine learning, computer vision and natural language processing, which can be significantly accelerated through the use of graphics processors and developed more quickly thanks to the CUDA-X AI libraries. The technologies support all core components of the SAS AI portfolio.

Thanks to the extended support for Nvidia GPUs in SAS Viya, customers benefit from AI functions such as image recognition and classification or sentiment recognition. Various SAS solutions benefit from this, including SAS Visual Data Mining, Machine Learning and SAS Event Stream Processing. AI-based SAS analysis models can be created even faster and more easily with Nvidia's graphics processors. In addition, companies are increasingly moving capabilities such as deep learning and autonomous decision making to devices "on the edge", which expands the possibilities in the IoT. When an edge device such as a commercial drone is equipped with AI technology, it can autonomously perform tasks ranging from infrastructure monitoring to predictive maintenance of industrial equipment. By integrating the GPU and analytics into the drone, the data is processed exactly where it is collected. Real-time data analysis enables faster and more accurate decisions.

AI brings significant added value to industries such as healthcare, medical technology, manufacturing and financial services. The following examples illustrate how SAS and Nvidia are helping customers optimize their AI processes: Healthcare providers are using Object Recognition to identify cancer cells as benign or malignant. Manufacturers use computer vision to detect faulty products before they leave the production line. Financial institutions are saving trillions of dollars through fraud detection.

"AI is fundamentally changing the business of companies across all industries," explains Gavin Day, Senior Vice President of Technology at SAS. "A fundamental part of this AI-driven transformation is advanced analytics. Powerful GPUs perform millions of mathematical calculations at incredible speed, accelerating the analysis and therefore the impact of artificial intelligence. In our partnership with Nvidia, we are pooling our expertise to complement human intelligence and unlock the true potential of AI."

"Through our collaboration with SAS, companies can realize the full benefits of AI for their business processes," said Ian Buck, Vice President and General Manager of Accelerated Computing at Nvidia. "Thanks to Nvidia's technology, companies can accelerate their data science workflow. This not only enables them to offer new services, but also increases their innovative strength and profitability."

The partnership underlines the analytics provider's extensive strategic commitment to AI and machine learning. Over the next three years, USD 1 billion is to be invested in the further development of AI software, training programs and other measures.