Ubitium Reveals A Universal Processor Combining CPU, GPU, DSP & FPGA Powers

Microchips have been at the core of the digital revolution—literally!

Today, they’re used in pretty much all the devices we use for personal and professional activities. Computers, laptops, tablets, and phones (both smart and dumb) are just some of the obvious machines that are powered by microchips.

Ahead of this, they’re also used in vehicles, industrial machinery, household electronics, and a wide range of IoT and IIoT devices.

As we step into the age of artificial intelligence (AI) and generative artificial intelligence (GenAI), more and more of these devices are finding the need for higher-performance chips, in addition to the added requirements of AI-dedicated chips.

When it comes to AI and GenAI, the industry’s reliance tips more towards GPU (graphics processing units) for training and operation purposes, while for smaller requirements, businesses are turning to AI-enabled CPUs (central processing units).

With such diverse needs, the world is filling up with diverse microchips—a problem Düsseldorf-based semiconductor startup Ubitium is out to solve.

Recently, through a press release published on its website, Ubitium announced that it was building the first ever Universal RISC-V (pronounced risk-five) processor based on the Reduced Instruction Set Computer (RISC) principles.

The idea is to combine the functions of a CPU, GPU, DSP (digital signal processor), and FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) in one chip using one architecture.

Ubitium’s breakthrough universal processor can handle diverse computing workloads on a single, efficient chip, enabling simpler, smarter, and more cost-effective devices across industries. The startup expects to launch its first chips by 2026.

“Our Universal Processor does it all – CPU, GPU, DSP, FPGA – in one chip, one architecture. This isn’t an incremental improvement. It is a paradigm shift. This is the processor architecture the AI era demands,” said Hyun Shin Cho, CEO of Ubitium.

Founded by semiconductor veterans, including CTO Martin Vorbach who holds over 200 semiconductor patents licensed by major US chip companies, the company has broken the 57-year-old Tomasulo algorithm industry standard that rules the $500 billion microprocessor industry.

“The $500 billion processor industry is built on restrictive boundaries between computing tasks. We’re erasing those boundaries,” added Cho.

“For too long, we’ve accepted that making devices intelligent means making them complex. Multiple processors or processor cores, multiple development teams, endless integration challenges—today, that changes. Our Universal Processor delivers workload-agnostic and AI-enabling compute capabilities to edge devices with a single chip, at a fraction of the cost to develop and manufacture compared to today’s offerings.”

With the semiconductor market projected to exceed $700 billion by 2025, Ubitium’s technology initially targets embedded systems and robotics.

Source

Ahead of this, the company announced a successful seed funding round, co-led by Runa Capital, Inflection, and KBC Focus Fund, in which it managed to raise $3.7 million.

As per the press release, the investment will be used to develop the prototypes and prepare initial development kits for customers.

“We’re impressed by Ubitium’s unique approach to processor microarchitecture, which is now able to adapt to any type of workload—from simple control logic to massive parallel data flow processing,” commented Dmitry Galperin, a General Partner at Runa Capital.

At the same time, the promise of revolutionizing microchips isn’t new.

Earlier in the year, Flow Computing revealed that it was working on a PPU (parallel processing unit) that could deliver 100x the performance of a CPU. These chips could fit inside phones and watches while improving their battery life and performance.

However, neither Ubitium nor Flow Computing has built a chip as yet but come into the industry with big ambitions.

Do you think Ubitium’s ambitious microchip will be able to set a new standard in the microchip industry?

Do you think the idea of building a combined, multipurpose processor using a new architecture style is a good idea or do you think the previous architecture should be retained?

Let us know in the comments below!

First published on Mon, Nov 25, 2024

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Artificial Intelligence (AI)Machine LearningRoboticsEmerging Technology Ubitium Central Processing Unit CPU Graphics Processing Unit GPU Digital Signal Processor DSP Field Programmable Gate Array FPGA Reduced Instruction Set Computer RISC RISC-V Flow Computing Internet Of Things IoT Industrial Internet Of Things IIoT

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