Artificial Intelligence is redefining the way technology is built, deployed, and delivered — from infrastructure to devices, and from the cloud to the edge. In this new episode of the TD SYNNEX AI Podcast, Fabrice Bagniakana, AI Director for Europe at TD SYNNEX, speaks with Ilenia Lupi, EMEA Distribution Channel Director at Lenovo. Together, they explore Lenovo’s vision of “Smarter AI for All,” the company’s collaboration with NVIDIA on AI-Ready Infrastructure, and how innovations like AI PCs and the ThinkStation PGX are helping accelerate AI adoption across industries. This conversation offers valuable insights into how Lenovo and its partners are shaping the future of intelligent technology in the EMEA region.
Fabrice BAGNIAKANA : Ilenia, to start, could you introduce yourself and tell us about your role at Lenovo?
Ilenia Lupi : Hello everyone, my name is Ilenia Lupi, and I’m the Director of the EMEA Distribution Channel at Lenovo.
In my role, I’m responsible for shaping our distribution strategy, driving growth, and strengthening the collaboration with our network of distributors, resellers, and system integrators across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
My mission is to align Lenovo’s global vision with local market realities — ensuring our partners have the right tools, knowledge, and programs to seize opportunities in fast-evolving areas like Artificial Intelligence, hybrid infrastructure, and edge computing.
Ultimately, my goal is to enable our partners to grow profitably while delivering smarter, more innovative solutions to our shared customers.
Fabrice: AI is transforming every part of the IT landscape. Could you share Lenovo’s overall strategy in AI and how you’re supporting customers and partners?
Ilenia: At Lenovo, we see AI as a transformative force that is reshaping every layer of technology — from the cloud to the edge, from data centers to personal devices.
Our approach is captured in our vision of ‘Smarter AI for All’ — bringing the power of AI to everyone, everywhere, through intelligent, accessible, and responsible innovation.
There are several pillars in Lenovo’s AI strategy:
- AI-Ready Portfolio: We are building devices and infrastructures designed to handle AI workloads — integrating CPUs, GPUs, and NPUs.
- Ecosystem Collaboration: Partnering with NVIDIA, Intel, and Microsoft to co-engineer optimized AI solutions.
- Channel Enablement: Empowering partners with education, incentives, and marketing support.
- Customer Value: Focusing on real-world outcomes in industries such as manufacturing, healthcare, finance, and education.
- Responsible AI: Ensuring AI is developed and used ethically, with data security, privacy, and transparency at the center.
Across EMEA, my team translates this strategy into concrete action — enabling pilots, building partner competencies, and supporting scalable AI-ready business models.
Fabrice: Lenovo and NVIDIA have been working together on AI Ready Infrastructure solutions. Could you explain what this means and how it helps organizations accelerate their AI adoption?
Ilenia: Our collaboration with NVIDIA is a cornerstone of Lenovo’s AI strategy. Together, we’ve built a portfolio of AI-Ready Infrastructure — fully validated, high-performance systems that combine Lenovo’s hardware innovation with NVIDIA’s GPU and software leadership.
‘AI-Ready Infrastructure’ means:
- End-to-End Integration: Turnkey systems with NVIDIA GPUs and software stacks for faster deployment.
- Scalability: Seamless scaling from a single workstation to data center clusters.
- Performance Validation: Joint testing to ensure maximum efficiency.
- Complete Software Stack: Ready-to-use NVIDIA AI frameworks and tools that reduce time-to-value.
Fabrice: There’s a lot of buzz around AI PCs right now. What makes Lenovo’s AI PCs unique, and how do you see them shaping the future of the PC market?
Ilenia: AI PCs represent one of the most exciting evolutions in personal computing. These are not just powerful devices — they’re intelligent companions, capable of understanding, adapting, and assisting users in more natural ways.
Lenovo’s AI PCs stand out for:
- Hardware-Software Integration: Combining CPUs, GPUs, and NPUs for local AI performance.
- Security and Privacy: Lenovo ThinkShield ensures sensitive data is processed locally.
- Smarter User Experience: Features like voice and gesture recognition for intuitive interaction.
- Partnerships: Integration with Microsoft’s Windows Copilot+ ecosystem.
Within a few years, AI-enabled PCs will become the new standard — driving productivity, creativity, and innovation across industries.
Fabrice: Lenovo recently launched the ThinkStation PGX, a very powerful AI workstation. Could you tell us what makes this product special and why it’s an important step for Lenovo in the AI space?
Ilenia: The new Lenovo ThinkStation PGX marks a major milestone for Lenovo in AI computing. It’s a compact yet extremely powerful workstation designed for AI development and generative model inferencing — bringing data-center-level performance to the desktop.
Highlights include:
- NVIDIA Grace Blackwell Superchip delivering up to 1 petaflop of AI performance.
- 128 GB of unified memory for large models.
- Scalable architecture supporting over 400 billion parameters.
- Pre-installed NVIDIA DGX OS and AI stack for ready-to-use AI development.
- Hybrid workflow compatibility for smooth scalability.
The PGX democratizes AI development — giving teams data center power in a workstation form factor.
Fabrice: Lenovo and TD SYNNEX are working closely together to bring these innovations to market. From your perspective, what does this collaboration mean for partners and customers across EMEA?
Ilenia: Our partnership with TD SYNNEX is strategic for Lenovo across EMEA. Together, we’re enabling an entire ecosystem around AI innovation.
Key benefits:
- Reach and Expertise: TD SYNNEX’s footprint brings Lenovo’s AI solutions closer to every market.
- Partner Enablement: Joint training, workshops, and campaigns help partners grow AI capabilities.
- Go-to-Market Alignment: Bridging Lenovo’s global strategy with local execution.
- Customer Value: Faster delivery and localized support ensure customer satisfaction.
Together, we’re accelerating AI adoption across industries and empowering partners to unlock new business opportunities.
Fabrice: Looking ahead, how do you see AI shaping the IT and business landscape in the next 2 to 3 years, and what key advice would you give to our partners and audience?
Ilenia: In the next two to three years, AI will move from a trend to a core element of every organization’s digital strategy.
We’ll see:
- Distributed AI bringing compute closer to the data.
- Generative and Agentic AI driving autonomous decision-making.
- Vertical Specialization with AI tailored to industries.
- Ethical and Sustainable AI practices becoming essential.
- My advice to partners:
Start now — build experience and use cases. - Invest in skills — AI expertise will be key to differentiation.
- Collaborate — success will come from ecosystems.
- Stay agile — the AI landscape evolves fast.
- My advice to partners:
Those who start early and build trust will lead the next era of intelligent transformation — and Lenovo, together with TD SYNNEX, is ready to help them on that journey.
