Schneider Electric signs AI infrastructure partnership with Foxconn

The French energy technology firm Schneider Electric has announced a strategic collaboration with Foxconn to develop next-generation AI data centre infrastructure.

The deal includes collaboration on ready-to-deploy solutions for AI infrastructure including modular power, standardized blueprints for AI hardware, and closed-loop energy systems.

Schneider Electric and Foxconn said they expect production based on the collaboration to start later this year.

Olivier Blum, chief executive of Schneider Electric, said that energy has become a core enabler for the compute needed to meet AI demand.

“At Schneider Electric, we are advancing energy tech to build the most efficient and sustainable AI factories by bringing integrated power, cooling, and digital capabilities into AI data centres,” he added. “Working with Foxconn, we are helping customers build capacity with real speed, resilience, and efficiency, as energy technology partners to an industry that is firmly entering the era of intelligence.”

Foxconn, also known as Hon Hai Technology Group inside Taiwan, is Nvidia’s biggest server supplier, the largest iPhone assembler, and is the world’s largest contract manufacturer.

Young Liu, chairman of Foxconn, said that his firm would combine its expertise in AI systems and manufacturing with Schneider Electric’s in energy to help scale AI faster and more sustainably.

Energy production has emerged as a major bottleneck for AI infrastructure expansion. On 3 June, Meta struck a 20-year agreement with Constellation Energy that will see it purchase nuclear power for AI operations. In April, OpenAI paused its £31 billion Stargate UK project, citing high energy costs as a roadblock.