‘China’s Google’ releases its first AI chip
‘China’s Google’
releases its first AI chip
July 4, 2018
Baidu unveiled an artificial-intelligence chip called
Kunlun during its annual Baidu Create event on Tuesday. The company joins a
raft of other Chinese firms in designing hardware tailored for machine
learning.
Seven years: Kunlun is optimized for various AI tasks,
including voice recognition, natural-language processing, image recognition,
and autonomous driving. Baidu first started making customized AI processors
using FPGAs (a kind of chip that can be reconfigured on the fly) in 2011. The
new design is 30 times faster than the original FPGA-based processor, but the
company says it’s not ready to begin mass-producing it yet.
AI everywhere: Baidu’s AI capabilities are developing
fast. The company’s driverless minibuses will soon be deployed on power plant
campuses in China. EasyDL, a deep-learning tool the company developed for
people with very little technical training, is enabling doctors to DIY
diagnostic aids such as more efficient parasite screening.
Why it matters: Customized hardware will help Baidu scale
up its AI capabilities at lower cost. China’s weak semiconductor industry has
also become the focus of national soul-searching following the ZTE debacle.
This is, perhaps, the latest sign that the escalating trade tensions with the
US are galvanizing China’s interest in fundamental technology.
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