FADU Unveils 'File Semantic SSD' for AI Data Centers, Advancing Storage Innovation

Unveils Next-Generation Storage Technology at OCP Global Summit
Processes Files Directly on SSD Without Going Through CPU
Up to 2.5x Higher Performance Than Previous Gen5 Models

FADU, a semiconductor company specializing in data centers, has unveiled next-generation storage technology optimized for AI data centers.

FADU said on October 15 that it had debuted the world's first File Semantic SSD (FS-SSD) at the 2026 OCP Global Summit, being held from October 12 to 15 (local time) at the San Jose Convention Center in San Jose, California. The company also introduced storage solutions for AI data centers and its business vision.

The OCP Global Summit is an annual event hosted by the Open Compute Project (OCP), the world's largest open data center technology community. This year's summit was held under the theme "Scaling Innovation for the AI Era" and brought together global technology giants and companies in the semiconductor, server, and infrastructure industries.

FADU, an OCP member since 2022, set up its own booth this year to showcase its next-generation storage technology and key products.

The FS-SSD unveiled at the event is a storage technology designed to move beyond the way conventional SSDs process data in block-address units and instead understand and manage files directly. FADU equipped its sixth-generation SSD controller with file-processing firmware, enabling the SSD to handle tasks internally that were previously managed by the server's central processing unit (CPU) and operating system, including file searches, access-permission checks, and mapping between files and addresses.

Visitors look at a demonstration of the File Semantic SSD (FS-SSD), unveiled for the first time in the world by Fadu, at the 2026 OCP Global Summit held at the San Jose Convention Center in California, U.S. Fadu.

The technology also uses standard Non-Volatile Memory Express (NVMe) commands to carry file requests. This allows accelerators such as graphics processing units (GPUs) and data processing units (DPUs), as well as other servers connected over a network, to read and write files directly from the SSD without going through the CPU.

As generative AI and AI inference become more widespread, storage workloads are increasing, including repeatedly reading training data and quickly saving checkpoints. In conventional systems, a GPU must go through the CPU and host file system to open a file, which can cause data-processing delays and increase the CPU workload.

The FS-SSD shortens this data access path to enable accelerators to access storage directly. FADU said this can reduce the CPU, memory, and software layers required for file services, lowering power consumption and operating costs for storage servers.

FADU plans to build on the FS-SSD to advance its technology into DPU-based hostless storage servers and scale-out file storage. It also plans to provide related reference designs to original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and original design manufacturer (ODM) partners.

At the event, FADU also demonstrated the performance of its sixth-generation (Gen6) SSD controller. Using a 16TB SSD equipped with the Gen6 controller, the FC6161, the company showcased performance up to 2.5 times higher than that of the previous fifth-generation (Gen5) product.

FADU also highlighted power efficiency. A finished SSD based on the Gen6 controller consumes less than 28W during sequential writes and less than 5W in standby. The controller itself consumes less than 6W for read operations and about 7W for write operations. FADU said performance per watt had also improved significantly compared with Gen5.

FADU CEO Nam Yi-hyun said, "Today's AI data centers require a range of capabilities, including power efficiency, stable latency, power management, and cooling. Building on our controller technology, recognized in the global market, we will use the FS-SSD to become a leading provider of AI storage solutions."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.