With the demands of artificial intelligence outpacing Moores Law, a pair of Silicon Valley chip designers are rethinking the architectural approaches for machine-learning applications.
In a sectorwhere smaller has beenbeautiful for decades,can bigger really be better for lowering a chips workload latency?
Designers at thecompanies, Cerebras Systems and Xilinx, used the Hot Chips symposium in Palo Alto, California, last week as the backdrop to their largest product releases, each of which aims to pack more processing power for intensivetechnologies.
To do it, the companies are bucking the trend named for Gordon Moore, the former chief executive of Intel, who observed five decades ago that transistor densities on a microchip double about every two years. While the prediction has guided R&D teams in the intervening years, the limits of physical space on a single chip now are leading designers to explore novel solutions.
Xilinx, based in Palo Alto, is touting its new Virtex Ultra Scale Plusfield-programmable gate array, or FPGA. It possessesnine billion logic cells in a system-on-chip platform that can access 1.5 terabits of memory per second. Built on a 16-nanometerstandard, thechip's 35 billion transistors are larger by 1.6 times the logic density of its previous iteration, the Virtex UltraScale.
To make their designs work,Cerebras and Xilinx both stepped back from the sector's drivetoproduce shorter distances between transistors. From 10 micrometers in 1971, designers have shrunk those lengths to infinitesimal distances to accommodate more integrated circuits on their chips.
Following Moores Law, Koreas Samsung and Taiwans TSMC began producing5nm chips earlier this year, and both companies are working on 3nm designs that could hit the market in 2021. Shortening the distance between circuits shaves processing time, but it alsoraisesissues around quality control in manufacturing and cooling in operations.
The chip's hugesize is aimed mostly at cloud services providers like Amazon Web Services, Microsoft and Google that rent processing power and storage to corporationsand government agencies. While Cerebras saysselect customers are using its chip, it has yet to release details about when the Wafer Scale Engine will be available on the open market.
Xilinx scaled down its latest FGPA from the 20nm standard. Doing so allowed it to forge 2,000 user input-output connections and achieve a per-second transceiver bandwidth of 4.5 terabits. With it, users can implement advanced SoC design architectures or prototype their own, the company says.
To improve time to market, Xilinx offers co-validation that lets users integrate and customize hardware and software designs both before physical parts become available. The feature is part of a development platform for the FPGA that includes de-bugging and visibility tools. The company plans to bring the Ultra Scale Plus to market next year.
According to Open AI, a foundation that works to guide the development of artificial technology, computational resources used to train the most advanced machine-learning algorithms grew by 300,000 times between 2012 and 2018.
The rate means chip makers must redouble their efforts, both traditional and unconventional, to keep pace with demand.
Original post:
Silicon Valley Chip Makers Add New Twist to Moore's Law - Toolbox
- HD Moores Law - Video - July 24th, 2012 [July 24th, 2012]
- Moores Law - Transistor Graph - Video - July 24th, 2012 [July 24th, 2012]
- Moores Lane road construction project begins - October 2nd, 2012 [October 2nd, 2012]
- Orono man totals pickup while reaching for cellphone - October 2nd, 2012 [October 2nd, 2012]
- 2 in Charlotte face fake ID charges - October 4th, 2012 [October 4th, 2012]
- Why there may be more to computing than Moores Law - October 11th, 2012 [October 11th, 2012]
- VR pioneer invents 'illumination-as-a-service' - October 12th, 2012 [October 12th, 2012]
- What is reality...M theory vs Moores law creating real universe vs creating a virtual one - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- The Rayz/Moores Law @ Put-in-Bay Final Countdown - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Moores Law @ Beer Barrel Put-in-Bay Hip Hop Medley - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Good explanation of the singularity - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- What you MUST know about the future - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Computer Apple 1 How to tell value KK4WW - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Rise of the transapients - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Moores Law Music Performing Bruce Springsteen - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Moore's Law Ice Cream Man - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Moores Law performs Vehicle at PIB - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Explaining Moores Law [HD] - MOCustoms.co.uk - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Global Challenge Part Fifty - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Towards next-generation devices through computer nanomaterial design for semiconductor spintronics - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Aiming to establish new spintronics - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Correlated electronic materials - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Energy Efficient Electronics: Searching for the Milli-Volt Switch - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Moores Law - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Geeking out aero-style for a hundred bucks - Dan Shapiro - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- moores law visualization - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- how moores law affects conrad shawcross - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- The Everton Autobiography: How the Blues nearly signed the great Ferenc Puskas & when police action thwarted Goodison ... - November 2nd, 2012 [November 2nd, 2012]
- Letters: Guardian 'surrender' on self-regulation - November 7th, 2012 [November 7th, 2012]
- Academics take issue with Guardian editorial on press regulation - November 9th, 2012 [November 9th, 2012]
- Area deaths - November 22nd, 2012 [November 22nd, 2012]
- clip 2012 12 02 19;00;19 - Video - December 4th, 2012 [December 4th, 2012]
- Police news: Twice as many helmeted motorcyclists crash since law repeal, kids pair with emergency responders during ... - December 5th, 2012 [December 5th, 2012]
- Clallam burglaries are on the rise - December 6th, 2012 [December 6th, 2012]
- When exotic investments are too good to be true - December 10th, 2012 [December 10th, 2012]
- Top headlines: Man in custody in deadly drive-by shooting, Genesee County commissioner says judge can pay back ... - December 12th, 2012 [December 12th, 2012]
- Paul Raschke - Obituary - December 12th, 2012 [December 12th, 2012]
- Pitt County Grand Jury - December 17th, 2012 [December 17th, 2012]
- Connecticut school shooting prompts Genesee County schools, police to take extra precautions - December 18th, 2012 [December 18th, 2012]
- MEN Sport review of the year 2012 - December 18th, 2012 [December 18th, 2012]
- 'The police weren't laughing:' Text message 'joke' of gunfire frightens Grand Blanc, county schools deal with 'end of ... - December 20th, 2012 [December 20th, 2012]
- Top headlines: Schools closed in Genesee County amid violence rumors, Flint church holds candlelight vigil - December 21st, 2012 [December 21st, 2012]
- More than $1 million worth of drugs seized in Salisbury - December 21st, 2012 [December 21st, 2012]
- Anatomy of the school-closing decision: Rumors of violence led to all Genesee County schools shutting for two days - December 21st, 2012 [December 21st, 2012]
- Solo rock stars die sooner than those in bands - December 21st, 2012 [December 21st, 2012]
- Lecturer's private research not 'held' by university for purposes of FOI disclosure, rules Tribunal - December 22nd, 2012 [December 22nd, 2012]
- Liverpool Local News: Liverpool John Moores University to handout record £2.1m after trebling student scholarship kitty - December 26th, 2012 [December 26th, 2012]
- University and College News: Liverpool John Moores University to handout record £2.1m after trebling student ... - December 26th, 2012 [December 26th, 2012]
- Storm whips into Northeast bringing snow, rain - December 28th, 2012 [December 28th, 2012]
- Genesee County sheriff says fireplace blockage may have allowed carbon monoxide buildup - December 28th, 2012 [December 28th, 2012]
- Moores Law Experiment 2 - Video - September 18th, 2013 [September 18th, 2013]
- The Skanner Newspaper - Remember the Moores at Christmastime - December 20th, 2013 [December 20th, 2013]
- HowStuffWorks "How Moore's Law Works" - Computer - December 20th, 2013 [December 20th, 2013]
- Minneapolis Housing Trend Favors More Residential Home Office Use - December 31st, 2013 [December 31st, 2013]
- Kendal solicitor wins place with top law firm - January 1st, 2014 [January 1st, 2014]
- Prince George’s County home sales - January 3rd, 2014 [January 3rd, 2014]
- Obituary: Loyce Tapp - January 5th, 2014 [January 5th, 2014]
- More charges for WSU grad arrested with bombs - January 11th, 2014 [January 11th, 2014]
- Chemical weapons charge added to man with dozens of bombs - January 11th, 2014 [January 11th, 2014]
- Myths of Moore's Law - CNET News - January 16th, 2014 [January 16th, 2014]
- Team 10 saves war medals from auction - January 22nd, 2014 [January 22nd, 2014]
- Dad who abducted kids, fled to Cuba found insane - January 23rd, 2014 [January 23rd, 2014]
- Calendar: Jan. 23 to 26 - January 23rd, 2014 [January 23rd, 2014]
- After baby's death in Perry County, parents seek answers - January 23rd, 2014 [January 23rd, 2014]
- Simulations to enable novel lithographic patterning techniques - January 28th, 2014 [January 28th, 2014]
- Sullivan sued by victim’s parents - January 30th, 2014 [January 30th, 2014]
- Palm Beach murderer James Sulllivan sued to recover $13.5 million he was ordered to pay 20 years ago for killing his ... - January 30th, 2014 [January 30th, 2014]
- Group: Adult jail no place for juveniles - January 31st, 2014 [January 31st, 2014]
- Sotomayor Presides Over Moot Court Raising Privacy Questions - January 31st, 2014 [January 31st, 2014]
- Harbour Grace mayor under pressure over staffing crisis - February 4th, 2014 [February 4th, 2014]
- Colleens Dream Foundation Grants Over $12,000 to UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center to Fund Ovarian Cancer Research - February 4th, 2014 [February 4th, 2014]
- Crossbar nanowire chips combine to form tiny CPU for ... - February 6th, 2014 [February 6th, 2014]
- New Mexico Blocks Vote on Legalized Pot - February 12th, 2014 [February 12th, 2014]
- Calendar Feb. 17 to Feb.19 - February 18th, 2014 [February 18th, 2014]
- Calendar: Feb. 20 to 23 - February 20th, 2014 [February 20th, 2014]
- IBM Atomic Shorts The end of Moores law 00 12 - Video - February 28th, 2014 [February 28th, 2014]
- MIT Research Looks to Extend Moores Law - March 1st, 2014 [March 1st, 2014]
- Indiana Guardsman's bomb-possession charge moved to federal court - March 4th, 2014 [March 4th, 2014]
- Bomb case moved to federal court - March 5th, 2014 [March 5th, 2014]
- Will 100 become the new 60? - March 9th, 2014 [March 9th, 2014]