Wistron opens first US smart manufacturing facility

Artificial intelligence (AI) server maker Wistron Corp (緯創) on Tuesday opened its smart manufacturing facility in Fort Worth, Texas, where one of Nvidia Corp’s most advanced AI systems has entered mass production.

The D1 facility is Wistron’s first manufacturing base in the US. Built at a cost of US$700 million, it spans approximately 30,100m2.

The Fort Worth plant would be the first to mass produce Nvidia’s GB300 Grace Blackwell Ultra chips in the US, Wistron chairman Simon Lin (林憲銘) said at the opening ceremony.

It would also be capable of manufacturing Nvidia’s next-generation Vera Rubin chips, he said.

The D1 plant, which has an automation rate of about 60 percent, is only the beginning, Lin said, adding that Wistron is already planning a second facility, D2, which is expected to be twice the size of D1.

As Wistron expands its advanced manufacturing capabilities, it will continue to develop a local supply chain covering everything from chips to complete systems, he said.

The next stage of the AI industry would not be built from a single production base, but through a global presence, Lin said.

In addition, Wistron chose to establish itself “at the heart of technology” and grow together with its partners, he added.

Representative to the US Alexander Yui (俞大？), Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) and Forth Worth Economic Development Department Director Jessica Rogers also attended the ceremony.

Wistron acquired the D1 plant in April last year and began mass production this month to meet customer demand, Wistron president and CEO Jeff Lin (林建勳) said.