Western Digital slides 4.7% after Google’s TurboQuant but bets on cloud AI growth
Shares slid 4.7% after Google unveiled TurboQuant, a compression algorithm that cuts AI model memory requirements by up to 6x and boosts performance, potentially reducing demand for storage. Western Digital is forecasting growth by leveraging AI and cloud-driven high-capacity drive shipments and next-gen storage technologies for hyperscale customers.
1. Market Reaction
Memory stocks fell despite a broader tech rally, with Western Digital shares down 4.7% following the unveiling of TurboQuant, reflecting investor concerns over potential declines in storage demand for AI systems.
2. TurboQuant Technology
TurboQuant compresses key-value cache data to 3 bits without retraining, achieving up to 6x memory size reduction and up to 8x performance gains on H100 GPUs using PolarQuant rotation and the Quantized Johnson-Lindenstrauss method to minimize residual errors.
3. Western Digital’s AI and Cloud Strategy
Western Digital is capitalizing on surging AI and cloud demand by expanding high-capacity hard drive shipments and deploying next-generation storage technologies tailored for hyperscale customers seeking efficient, large-scale data management solutions.