Top researchers leave Intel to build startup with 'the biggest, baddest CPU'
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Re: Top researchers leave Intel to build startup with 'the biggest, baddest CPU'
#2Re: Top researchers leave Intel to build startup with 'the biggest, baddest CPU'
#3Can't they make a GPU instead? Please save us!
Re: Top researchers leave Intel to build startup with 'the biggest, baddest CPU'
#4>AheadComputing is betting on an open architecture called RISC-V
I wish them success, plus I hope they do not do what Intel did with its add-ons.
Hoping for an open system (which I think RISC-V is) and nothing even close to Intel ME or AMT.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_Management_Engine
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_Active_Management_Techno...
Re: Top researchers leave Intel to build startup with 'the biggest, baddest CPU'
#5I don't know, RISC-V doesn't seem to be very disruptive at this point? And what's the deal with specialized chips that the article mentions? Today, the "biggest, baddest" CPUs - or at least CPU cores - are the general-purpose (PC and, somehow, Apple mobile / tablet) ones. The opposite of specialized.
Are they going to make one with 16384 cores for AI / graphics or are they going to make one with 8 / 16 / 32 cores that can each execute like 20 instructions per cycle?
Re: Top researchers leave Intel to build startup with 'the biggest, baddest CPU'
#6I don't know, RISC-V doesn't seem to be very disruptive at this point? And what's the deal with specialized chips that the article mentions? Today, the "biggest, baddest" CPUs - or at least CPU cores - are the general-purpose (PC and, somehow, Apple mobile / tablet) ones. The opposite of specialized. Are they going to make one with 16384 cores for AI / graphics or are they going to make one with 8 / 16 / 32 cores tha…
Most of the work that goes into chip design isn't related to the ISA per se. So, it's entirely plausible that some talented chip engineers could design something that implements RISC-V in a way that is quite powerful, much like how Apple did with ARM.
The biggest roadblock would be lack of support on the software side.
Re: Top researchers leave Intel to build startup with 'the biggest, baddest CPU'
#7Can't they make a GPU instead? Please save us!
A GPU is a very different beast that relies much more heavily on having a gigantic team of software developers supporting it. A CPU is (comparatively) straightforward. You fab and validate a world class design, make sure compiler support is good enough, upstream some drivers and kernel support, and make sure the standard documentation/debugging/optimization tools are all functional. This is incredibly difficult, but achievable because these are all standardized and well understood interface points.
With GPUs you have all these challenges while also building a massively complicated set of custom compilers and interfaces on the software side, while at the same time trying to keep broken user software written against some other company's interface not only functional, but performant.
Re: Top researchers leave Intel to build startup with 'the biggest, baddest CPU'
#8I don't know, RISC-V doesn't seem to be very disruptive at this point? And what's the deal with specialized chips that the article mentions? Today, the "biggest, baddest" CPUs - or at least CPU cores - are the general-purpose (PC and, somehow, Apple mobile / tablet) ones. The opposite of specialized. Are they going to make one with 16384 cores for AI / graphics or are they going to make one with 8 / 16 / 32 cores tha…
Most of the work that goes into chip design isn't related to the ISA per se. So, it's entirely plausible that some talented chip engineers could design something that implements RISC-V in a way that is quite powerful, much like how Apple did with ARM. The biggest roadblock would be lack of support on the software side.
Yeah sure, but the question remains if it's going to be a huge amount of small cores or a moderate amount of huge cores.
What it can't be is something like the Mill if they implement the RISC-V ISA.
Re: Top researchers leave Intel to build startup with 'the biggest, baddest CPU'
#9I was hoping they’d work with existing RV folks rather than starting another one of a dozen smaller attempts. Article says however that Keller from Tenstorrent will be on their board. Good I suppose, but hard to know the ramifications. Why not merge their companies and investments in one direction?
Re: Top researchers leave Intel to build startup with 'the biggest, baddest CPU'
#10The article is so bad. Why do they refuse to say anything about what these companies are actually trying to make. RISC-V Chips exist, does the journalist just not know? Does the company refuse to say what they are doing?