Introduction
CPU power was all the talk until recently. Now, we detect a shift in interest from CPUs to Neural Processing Units (NPUs). Traditionally found in devices like smartphones, tablets, and Macs, NPUs are now a key feature in chips produced by Intel and AMD. With more AI tasks being performed on-device, rather than in the cloud, the significance of NPUs continues to rise.
Geekbench to the Rescue
Realizing the growing importance of NPUs in the tech industry, Primate Labs, creators of the Geekbench app, have been working diligently in the background on a project to test NPU performance.
For the unaware, Geekbench is an app famous for testing CPU and GPU performance in computers. This has positioned it as a trusted and reliable benchmarking tool. The new version, called Geekbench AI, is specifically designed to evaluate NPU performance. It was previously named Geekbench ML (Machine Learning) in its beta phase.
Primate Labs’ Push to Ride the AI wave
The upgrade to Geekbench 1.0 and renaming it to Geekbench AI is an attempt to cash in on the commotion around AI. This move coincides with Microsoft’s initiative, Copilot+, as well as the push by AMD, Intel, Qualcomm, and Apple to amplify NPU performance in their chips.
A Unique Testing Approach
John Poole from Primate Labs, while announcing this update, shed light on how Geekbench AI’s benchmarking process works. Similar to CPU workloads, AI workloads greatly vary in their utilization of different cores or threads.
This makes it essential to include both single-core and multi-core benchmarks in testing metrics. Keeping this in mind, Geekbench AI presents its summary for a variety of workload tests. It performs these tests using single-precision data, half-precision data, and quantized data, thus catering to different precision needs and AI system purposes.
AI Performance – An Important Tool for Decision Making
As we move towards a future where more AI processing happens on-device, people making purchasing decisions will highly benefit from the information provided by tools like Geekbench AI. This tool helps potential buyers understand the NPU capabilities of a device and its ability to handle AI tasks.
Looking Ahead
As we progress further into the digital era where AI technologies play an increasingly significant role, tools like Geekbench AI become indispensable. They provide necessary benchmarking information, allowing users to make informed decisions about the devices they purchase. In a time where on-device AI-processing is becoming more prevalent, the impact of such tools can be expected to be substantial.
With the introduction of Geekbench AI, Primate Labs is poised to fill a crucial gap in AI benchmarking. This will undoubtedly contribute to the ongoing evolution of AI technologies, playing a crucial part in the industry’s continual progress.
In conclusion, Geekbench AI is a significant milestone in the tech world. The ability to evaluate and compare the AI capabilities of different devices is an extremely helpful addition for both consumers and developers alike.