Skip to main content

'AI at the Edge' Creates New Semiconductor Demand

As more CIOs and CTOs focus attention on selecting the best-fit IT infrastructure for their particular cognitive computing needs, vendors of semiconductor technologies are exploring new ways to optimize their investment in solutions at the edge of enterprise networks.

Revenue from the sale of Artificial Intelligence (AI) chipsets for edge inference and inference training will grow at 65 percent and 137 percent respectively between 2018 and 2023, according to the latest worldwide market study by ABI Research.

During 2018, shipment revenues from edge AI processing reached $1.3 billion, and by 2023 this figure is forecast to reach $23 billion. While it's a massive increase, that doesn’t necessarily favor current market leaders Intel and NVIDIA.

AI Chipset Market Development

According to the ABI assessment, there will be intense vendor competition to capture this revenue between established players and several prominent startup players.

"Companies are looking to the edge because it allows them to perform AI inference without transferring their data. The act of transferring data is inherently costly and in business-critical use cases where latency and accuracy are key, and constant connectivity is lacking, applications can’t be fulfilled," said Jack Vernon, industry analyst at ABI Research.

Moreover, locating AI inference processing at the edge also means that companies don’t have to share private or sensitive data with public cloud service providers, a scenario that has proven to be problematic in the healthcare and consumer sectors.

That said, edge AI is going to have a significant impact on the semiconductor industry. The biggest winners from the growth in edge AI are going to be those vendors that either own or are currently building intellectual properties for AI-related Application-Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs).

By 2023, it's predicted that ASICs could overtake GPUs as the architecture supporting AI inference at the edge, both in terms of annual vendor shipments and revenues.

In terms of market competition, on the AI inferencing side, Intel will be competing with several prominent AI start-ups -- such as Cambricon Technology, Horizon Robotics, Hailo Technologies, and Habana Labs -- for dominance of this market segment.

NVIDIA with its GPU-based AGX platform has also been gaining momentum in industrial automation and robotics. While FPGA leader Xilinx can also expect an uptick in revenues on the back of companies using FPGAs to perform inference at the edge, Intel as an FPGA vendor is also pushing its Movidius and Mobileye chipset.

Outlook for AI Chipset Applications Growth

For AI training, NVIDIA will hold on to its current position as the market leader. However, other AI applications at the edge will likely favor alternative vendors.

"Cloud vendors are deploying GPUs for AI training in the cloud due to their high performance. However, NVIDIA will see its market share chipped away by AI training focused ASIC vendors like Graphcore, who are building high-performance and use-case specific chipsets," concluded Vernon.

Popular posts from this blog

GenAI: A New Era in Business Transformation

The advent of artificial intelligence (AI) has ushered in a new frontier of innovation, with Generative AI (GenAI) at the forefront. At the brink of this revolution, it's crucial to understand the current GenAI adoption and its implications for commerce worldwide. A recent poll conducted by Gartner provides valuable insights into this emerging trend and the potential upside opportunities. Generative AI Market Development The poll, which included 1,419 executive leaders, indicates a significant shift in the corporate world's perception and adoption of GenAI. The data reveals that 45 percent of respondents are currently piloting GenAI, while another 10 percent have put it into production. This is a substantial increase from a similar poll conducted in March and April 2023, where only 15 percent were piloting and 4 percent were in production. GenAI is no longer a mere buzzword; it has become a strategic focus for organizations worldwide. As Frances Karamouzis, VP Analyst at Gartne

GenAI Revolution: The Future of B2B Sales Apps

When B2B buyers consider a purchase they spend just 17 percent of that time meeting with vendors. When they are comparing multiple suppliers‚ time spent with any one salesperson is 5 or 6 percent. Self-directed B2B buyer online research has already changed procurement. IT vendors are less likely to be involved in solution assessment. Now, more disruptive changes are on the horizon. By 2028, 60 percent of B2B seller work will be executed through conversational user interfaces via Generative Artificial Intelligence sales technologies -- that's up from less than 5 percent in 2023, according to Gartner. Generative AI Market Development "Sales operations leaders and their technology teams must prepare for the convergence of new forms of artificial intelligence, dynamic process automation, and reinvented deal-planning activities that will transform the sales function," said Adnan Zijadic, director analyst at Gartner . According to the Gartner assessment, Generative AI (GenAI) s

Industrial and Manufacturing Technology Growth

In an evolving era of rapid advancement, market demand for innovative technology in the industrial and manufacturing sectors is skyrocketing. Leaders are recognizing the immense potential of digital transformation and are driving initiatives to integrate technologies into their business operations.  These initiatives aim to enhance efficiency, reduce costs, and ultimately drive growth and competitiveness in an increasingly digital business upward trajectory. The industrial and manufacturing sectors have been the backbone of the Global Networked Economy, contributing $16 trillion in value in 2021. Industrial and Manufacturing Tech Market Development   This growth represents a 20 percent increase from 2020, highlighting the resilience and adaptability of these sectors in the face of unprecedented challenges, according to the latest worldwide market study by ABI Research . The five largest manufacturing verticals -- automotive, computer and electronic, primary metal, food, and machinery -