Acer’s Bold Play for the AI Desktop Market

It seems every tech company is currently desperate to join the AI trend, with GPU leaders like Nvidia and SSD champions all fighting for a piece of the AI pie. Furthermore, Acer recently joined the competition by showcasing its new mini AI machine at a launch event in Germany. So, what exactly is this new device the company created?

This Acer Box is a Real Brainy Bunch

According to CTEE.com, the Acer Veriton GN100 AI Mini Workstation is a compact machine built around an Nvidia GB10 Grace Blackwell Superchip. Furthermore, the company designed this workstation for smaller institutions and individuals who must handle AI workloads. Further details on the Veriton GN100’s specifications can be found on the company’s own listing. For instance, they packed 128 GB of unified memory and up to 4 TB of NVMe M.2 SSD storage into a box roughly twice the size of a Mac Mini.

Moreover, Acer boasts that up to 1 petaflop of AI compute performance is delivered through this configuration. So, how does this compare to the competition? Nvidia’s own mini AI PC, the DGX Spark, may have competition due to both machines sharing similar power levels. Going by sources, the DGX Spark may cost between $3,000 and $4,000. Although firm pricing and availability are lacking, Acer’s new Veriton shares this crucial omission of purchase details.

Nvidia’s AI Ambitions Get an Acer Ally

What else do the Acer machine and the DGX Spark share in common besides their power levels? In addition to both having specs, they also provide access to Nvidia’s comprehensive AI platform. This partnership with the advanced “green team” could be a huge benefit for the Veriton GN100. So, can these products be purchased right now? Currently, they both only feature a waitlist or “notify me” option, rather than a purchase button on their official listings.

Surprisingly, there have been other Nvidia-partnered machines before this Acer workstation came into existence, as Serve the Home recently spotted a very similar offering from Asus called the Ascent GX10. This AI machine boasts comparable specs and a similar target price, though it may have an advantage with 200 GbE networking. Nvidia is clearly working to shape the future of AI workstations in its favor through these partnerships, but is anyone else even competing? So far, AMD is still lingering as its Ryzen AI Max-powered mini PCs, such as the upcoming Corsair Strix Halo, are expected to carry a slightly more affordable price tag of around $2,300.