Today, Intel introduced Loihi 2, its second-generation neuromorphic research chip, and Lava, an open-source software framework for developing neuro-inspired applications. Their introduction signals Intel’s ongoing progress in advancing neuromorphic technology.
“Loihi 2 and Lava harvest insights from several years of collaborative research using Loihi. Our second-generation chip greatly improves the speed, programmability, and capacity of neuromorphic processing, broadening its usages in power and latency constrained intelligent computing applications. We are open sourcing Lava to address the need for software convergence, benchmarking, and cross-platform collaboration in the field, and to accelerate our progress toward commercial viability.”
–Mike Davies, director of Intel’s Neuromorphic Computing Lab
Iseki,
Consider the following article:
https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/newsroom/news/intel-unveils-neuromorphic-loihi-2-lava-software.html
September 30, 2021
I'm not disagreeing that Intel is in the chip business, but with Pat they are now prioritising getting software sorted before they deliver the hardware. Pat said so himself. Intel would benefit from providing Lava, as it helps their huge research community and doesn't waste the money spent there to date. But it's open source software, so I agree they won't be getting sales from this. They may find some other way of obtaining revenues from it, whether it's a subscription for advanced features or advertisements etc. Brand awareness is just as important and the AI / chip market is a very lucrative space, so it's possible Intel aren't even concerned about making money from software. Intel are trying to reclaw part of their old chip manufacturing market share but in doing so it's important to provide good customer service and find ways to promote themselves. With the Loihi 2 announcement Intel were promoting their new 7nm node technology, their latest neuromorphic chip and their new open source software. The only one of these with potential revenues in the short term is their 7nm node technology. We know Intel have recently spent time and effort rebranding their node technology so this announcement may purely have been to promote this.“Loihi 2 and Lava harvest insights from several years of collaborative research using Loihi. Our second-generation chip greatly improves the speed, programmability, and capacity of neuromorphic processing, broadening its usages in power and latency constrained intelligent computing applications. We are open sourcing Lava to address the need for software convergence, benchmarking, and cross-platform collaboration in the field, and to accelerate our progress toward commercial viability.”
–Mike Davies, director of Intel’s Neuromorphic Computing Lab
See:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/patrickmoorhead/2021/07/26/intel-updates-idm-20-strategy-with-new-node-naming-and-technologies/?sh=790f8a9129d5
Pure speculation, DYOR
