Tick tick tick: SiPearl is the French company selected by the European supercomputer consortium (EuroHPC JU) to develop a chip for the first exascale-class supercomputer in the region. The organization recently released updated specifications for the Rhea1 microchip, indicating that the first samples will be available later than initially expected.
Something to look forward to: With its newly announced iPads, Apple is fast-tracking the introduction of its M4 processors to compete in the upcoming AI PC race. Although the Cupertino giant claims it has the most powerful NPU on the market, Qualcomm might disagree. Meanwhile, Intel is preparing significant AI performance upgrades over the next year, and Nvidia claims that its GPUs reign supreme in generative AI.
WTF?! Arm's CEO has sounded a warning bell about the energy requirements needed to advance AI algorithms. He cautions that in a few years, "AI data centers" could require so much electricity that it could jeopardize the US power grid.