Akamai adds 8-card VPU instances for dense cloud transcoding
Akamai has launched a new 8-card VPU plan for Accelerated Compute Instances, expanding its cloud-based video processing offerings developed in partnership with NETINT. This new plan, powered by NETINT Quadra T1U VPUs, is designed to provide high-density transcoding capacity, enabling over 320 parallel streams for video on demand, live events, and user-generated content platforms, while also offering general-purpose compute for tasks like deinterlacing and audio processing.
Key Takeaways
- The new plan uses eight NETINT Quadra T1U VPUs in a single Akamai Accelerated Compute Instance.
- Akamai says customers can reliably achieve more than 320 parallel streams on the 8-card setup.
- The plan is designed for VOD, live event streaming, and user-generated content platforms.
- Akamai says the instance also provides general-purpose compute for deinterlacing, audio processing, dynamic manifest manipulation, SSAI, routing, and request management.
- Akamai and NETINT first announced their partnership in 2024, and Akamai launched one-card and two-card VPU plans in 2025.
Why It Matters
Akamai is pushing cloud VPU density closer to the hardware-heavy setups many media teams already run on-prem or in colocation. The 8-card plan combines high transcoding density with CPU capacity for tasks VPUs do not handle, including deinterlacing, audio processing, and SSAI. That matters for streaming operators trying to move specialized workflows into cloud infrastructure without giving up throughput. It also extends Akamai’s 2024 NETINT partnership and its 2025 one-card and two-card plans into a larger tier. What to watch next: how Akamai positions the three VPU plan sizes against specific media workloads at NAB Show.
Read full article at akamai.com