Open Cluster Designs for Artificial Intelligence

Open Cluster Designs for AI is an OCP Strategic Initiative that develops Open Pod Group and Open Cluster designs optimized for AI infrastructure. AI infrastructure demands heavy investment in system design and integration, and the same problems are often solved repeatedly, leaving most designs as one-offs. Extending the Open Systems for AI initiative, it produces guidelines and best practices spanning small, enterprise, neocloud, and hyperscale deployments. Its scope covers AI cluster designs detailed enough for procurement and deployment, including networking, topology, cabling, air- and liquid-cooled solutions, and power and cooling infrastructure, while leveraging existing OCP contributions and management standards.

Open Cluster Designs for AI

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About This Workstream

AI infrastructure is complex and requires significant investment in system design and integration. The same problems are being solved repeatedly and in different ways, and consequently most designs are one-offs.

The “Open Cluster Designs for AI” OCP Strategic Initiative develops Open Pod Group and Open Cluster designs optimized for AI infrastructure.

The resulting guidelines and best practices span small, enterprise, neocloud, and hyperscale deployment sizes. OCP has a proven track record in developing real solutions for open infrastructure and is the natural forum for this work, extending OCP’s Strategic Initiative Open Systems for AI.

Key Resources

The group’s 2026 OCP contributions are now available, alongside the Open Systems for AI whitepaper and AI resource hub.

Open Cluster Designs for AI — 2026 Contributions

Open Systems for AI Whitepaper

OCP AI Marketplace Listings & AI Resource Hub

AI-Focused Past, Present & Future Events

Scope

The initiative’s scope has two parts:

1. Open Cluster Designs

  • Develop specific AI cluster designs detailed enough to provide a technical basis for procurement and deployment
  • Scale-up, scale-out, front-end, storage, and management networking spanning both the Open Pod Group and Open Cluster layers
  • Physical and logical network topology spanning both the Open Pod Group and Open Cluster layers
  • Solutions for cabling and cable management
  • Both air-cooled and liquid-cooled solutions
  • Infrastructure, including power distribution, airflow, and liquid cooling

2. Relationship with Other OCP Contributions

  • Leverage OCP contributions as well as the Open Systems for AI blueprint whitepaper and its work-area organization into (a) DC Physical Infrastructure, (b) DC IT Infrastructure, and (c) Systems Management
  • Leverage OCP management standards for rack, pod, and cluster infrastructure management

Resources

Welcome to the OCP’s “Open Cluster Design for AI” Strategic Initiative

The workstream operates under the Strategic Initiatives Project

Disclaimer: Please do not submit any confidential information. All presentation materials, proposals, meeting minutes and/or supporting documents are published by OCP and are open to the public in accordance to OCP’s Bylaws and IP Policy. This can be found on the OCP OCP Policies page. If you have any questions please contact OCP.

Description

AI infrastructure is complex and requires significant investment in system design and integration. The same problems are being solved repeatedly and in different ways and consequently most designs are one-offs.

This “Open Cluster Designs for AI” OCP Strategic Initiative will develop Open Pod Group and Open Cluster designs optimized for AI infrastructure.

The resulting guidelines and best practices will span small, enterprise, neocloud, and hyperscale deployment sizes. OCP has a proven track record in developing real solutions for open infrastructure and is the natural forum for this work, extending the OCP’s Strategic Initiative Open Systems for AI.

Documents

Call recordings

Regular Project Calls

This initiative’s monthly calls occur every other Thursday.

Call Calendar

These meeting are recorded via audio and video. By participating you consent that these recordings may be made publicly available. Any presentation materials, proposals and meeting minutes are published on the respective project’s wiki page and are open to the public in accordance to OCP’s Bylaws and IP Policy. This can be found at http://www.opencompute.org/about/ocp-policies/. If you have any questions please contact OCP.

Open Cluster Designs for Artificial Intelligence calendar

Related Details

Contributions

All project contributions