Is the AI GPU the new mainframe? New open source tech allows users to 'timeshare' GPU resources for AI purposes for free — reminiscent of the days where scarce resources fostered computing elitism

A profile of a human brain against a digital background.
Image credit: geralt on Pixabay (Image credit: Pixabay)

Without an efficient way to squeeze additional computing power from existing infrastructure, organizations are often forced to purchase additional hardware or delay projects. This can lead to longer wait times for results and potentially losing out to competitors. This problem is compounded by the rise of AI workloads which require a high GPU compute load.

ClearML has come up with what it thinks is the perfect solution to this problem -  fractional GPU capability for open source users, making it possible to “split” a single GPU so it can run multiple AI tasks simultaneously.

This move recalls the early days of computing when mainframes could be shared among individuals and organizations, giving them the ability to utilize computing power without needing to buy additional hardware.

Fractional capabilities for Nvidia GPUs

ClearML says the new feature allows DevOps professionals and AI Infrastructure leaders to partition their Nvidia GTX, RTX, and data center-grade, MIG-enabled GPUs into smaller units to support multiple AI and HPC workloads, enabling users to switch between small R&D jobs and larger, more demanding training jobs.

The approach supports multi-tenancy, offering secure and confidential computing with hard memory limitation. ClearML says stakeholders can run isolated parallel workloads on a single shared compute resource, increasing efficiency and reducing costs.

“With our new free offering now supporting fractional capabilities for the broadest range of Nvidia GPUs than any other company, ClearML is democratizing access to compute as part of our commitment to help our community build better AI at any scale, faster,” says Moses Guttmann, CEO and Co-founder of ClearML. “We hope that organizations that might have a mixture of infrastructure are able to use ClearML and get more out of the compute and resources they already have.”

The new open source fractional GPU functionality is available for free on ClearML’s GitHub page.

ClearML Fractional GPU Utilization

(Image credit: ClearML)

More from TechRadar Pro

TOPICS
Wayne Williams
Editor

Wayne Williams is a freelancer writing news for TechRadar Pro. He has been writing about computers, technology, and the web for 30 years. In that time he wrote for most of the UK’s PC magazines, and launched, edited and published a number of them too.

Read more
A person's hand using DeepSeek on their mobile phone
'A virtual DPU within a GPU': Could clever hardware hack be behind DeepSeek's groundbreaking AI efficiency?
Project DIGITS - front view
I am thrilled by Nvidia’s cute petaflop mini PC wonder, and it’s time for Jensen’s law: it takes 100 months to get equal AI performance for 1/25th of the cost
Comino Grando Server
Puget Systems partners with Comino to bring more affordable liquid cooled dual-CPU, 8-GPU systems to the masses
Nvidia HQ
Nvidia calls DeepSeek an 'excellent AI advancement' and praises the Chinese AI app's ingenuity
Apple
Apple embraces Nvidia GPUs to accelerate LLM inference via its open source ReDrafter tech
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 50 Series image
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 50 Series GPUs supercharge generative AI on your PC
Latest in Pro
Epson EcoTank ET-4850 next to a TechRadar badge that reads Big Savings
I searched for the best printer deal you won't find in the Amazon Spring Sale
Microsoft Copiot Studio deep reasoning and agent flows
Microsoft reveals OpenAI-powered Copilot AI agents to bosot your work research and data analysis
Group of people meeting
Inflexible work policies are pushing tech workers to quit
Data leak
Top home hardware firm data leak could see millions of customers affected
Representational image depecting cybersecurity protection
Third-party security issues could be the biggest threat facing your business
An image of network security icons for a network encircling a digital blue earth.
Why multi-CDNs are going to shake up 2025
Latest in News
An image of Pro-Ject's Flatten it closed and opened
Pro-Ject’s new vinyl flattener will fix any warped LPs you inadvertently buy on Record Store Day
EA Sports F1 25 promotional image featuring drivers Oscar Piastri, Carlos Sainz and Oliver Bearman.
F1 25 has been officially announced, with this year's entry marking a return for Braking Point and a 'significant overhaul' for My Team mode
Garmin clippd integration
Garmin's golf watches just got a big software integration upgrade to help you improve your game
Robert Downey Jr reveals himself as Doctor Doom to a delighted crowd at San Diego Comic-Con 2024
Marvel is currently making a major announcement about Avengers: Doomsday's cast on YouTube, and I think it's going to be a long-winded reveal
Samsung QN90F on yellow background
Samsung announces US prices for its 2025 mini-LED TV lineup, and it’s good and bad news
Nintendo Switch Lite
Forget the Nintendo Switch 2, the original Switch is getting one last hurrah in a surprise Nintendo Direct tomorrow