Google Unveils Next-Gen AI Chips, Arm-based CPU For Cloud Computing

Google has unveiled its latest advancements in cloud computing with the revelation of a new version of its data centre artificial intelligence chips and the introduction of an Arm-based central processor. 

The company announced that the new tensor processing units (TPUs), known as TPU v5p, offer significant enhancements in performance, doubling the raw processing power compared to the previous generation.

In a move aimed at expanding its computing services, Google also introduced the Arm-branded central processing unit (CPU) named Axion. According to Google, Axion boasts superior performance when compared to traditional x86 chips, as well as general-purpose Arm chips available in the cloud.

Mark Lohmeyer, Vice President and General Manager of Compute and Machine Learning Infrastructure at Google Cloud, stressed the company's commitment to facilitating seamless adoption of these new technologies. Lohmeyer stated that Axion is designed to enable easy integration with existing workloads without the need for extensive re-architecting or rewriting of applications.

While competitors like Amazon.com and Microsoft have previously ventured into developing Arm CPUs to differentiate their cloud computing services, Google's introduction of Axion marks its first foray into building a CPU. The company's collaboration with Broadcom on prior generations of TPU chips has raised questions about potential partnerships for the development of Axion, although Google has not provided details on this matter.

Google revealed that the TPU v5p chip is optimised to operate in pods consisting of 8,960 chips, leveraging liquid cooling technology to ensure optimal performance. Additionally, the company disclosed that Axion offers a 30 per cent improvement in performance over general-purpose Arm chips and a 50 per cent enhancement compared to current-generation x86 chips from industry giants like Intel and AMD.

Already in use across various Google services such as YouTube Ads in Google Cloud, Axion is set to be expanded for broader usage and made available to the public later this year. Meanwhile, the TPU v5p chip is now generally available via Google Cloud, providing developers with access to advanced AI computing capabilities.