Russia's Elbrus has a RISC-V competitor as Yadro prepares native chips for launch
(2021/07/15)
- Reference: 1626369306
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2021/07/15/yadro_riscv/
- Source link:
Russia's Yadro and subsidiary Syntacore have announced an effort to develop homegrown processors based on the free and open RISC-V architecture.
A report in local newspaper [1]Ведомости , first spotted in the west by [2]AnandTech , pointed to state-owned Rostec providing up to 30bn rubles (around $400m, £290m) in backing to Yadro and Syntacore to build a range of devices featuring RISC-V chips.
But Yadro's public relations lead, Daria Galybina, told The Register it had been the subject of a "miscommunication on the part of Russian media."
[3]
Galybina clarified Rostec's involvement as being limited to tapping Yadro as one of several vendors of workstation components for a national digitalisation programme which will see the organisation distributing 60,000 systems a year – but "nothing is signed yet."
[4]
[5]
"Rostec would not work [with us] on RISC-V processors," Galybina explained. "They announced that they are ready to buy our workstations, based on these processors. Both the RISC-V microprocessors and workstations are developed by Yadro, in close cooperation with Syntacor – part of Yadro – at our own funds."
The project is being led by a new subsidiary, Yadro Microprocessors, established last year following the company's acquisition of a majority share of Syntacore in 2019. It represents a shift in focus for the company. "Yadro is a key OpenPower Foundation member and one of largest contributors in the OpenPower hard and software ecosystem," Galybina told us.
[6]
"We leverage a full stack of technologies to address our partners' and customers' demand. Our wide product portfolio incorporates a whole variety of microprocessor architectures, including OpenPower, Intel x86, Arm, MIPS, and RISC-V is coming."
[7]China's ISCAS to build 2,000 RISC-V laptops by the end of 2022 as nation seeks to cut reliance on Arm, Intel chips
[8]Chinese chip designers hope to topple Arm's Cortex-A76 with XiangShan RISC-V design
[9]India selects RISC-V for semiconductor self-sufficiency contest: Use these homegrown cores to build kit
[10]All-Russian 'Elbrus' PCs and servers go on sale
There's no such shock to be found from Syntacore's involvement, though. The company was a founding member of RISC-V International, the not-for-profit organisation which oversees the RISC-V standards and works to encourage adoption and further development. Its first RISC-V parts were released in 2015, and its current product range spans 32-bit and 64-bit implementations – including a 32-bit open-source microcontroller core dubbed SCR1 MCU.
The parts developed by the Yadro Microprocessor group will, the company confirmed, include 12nm system-on-chip designs for single-board computers, tablets, workstations, and servers, launching under the Yadro EL product line – starting with a single-board computer dubbed the EL Construct DevKit, which uses a Syntacore SCR7 processor with four RISC-V cores running at 1.5GHz.
The EL Construct T, meanwhile, is based on Syntacore's upcoming SCR9 design with eight energy-efficiency cores running between 1.5GHz and 2GHz, coprocessors for graphics, video, and image processing, and built-in USB Type-C connectivity – ideal for its target market of tablets.
The flagship parts, and the ones which have drawn Rostec's eye, are dubbed EL Suprema. Starting at 12nm, with a view to moving to 7nm or 6nm process nodes in a future release, the chips will offer up to 64 Syntacore SCR9 RISC-V cores running between 2.5GHz and 3GHz, alongside extensions for virtualization and vector operations.
[11]
This won't be Russia's first look at making a processor for the local market, mind you: the Moscow Centre of SPARC Technologies opened its order books for desktops and servers built around [12]native Elbrus chips in 2015 following the release of the first Elbrus chip, Elbrus 2000, in 2001. The latest design, Elbrus-16S, was unveiled in 2019 as a 16-core part running at 2GHz on a 16nm process – putting it at an equal clock speed to the planned RISC-V chips with twice the cores to boot.
The news comes as China becomes increasingly focused on RISC-V, most recently supporting work on a high-performance processor family dubbed [13]XiangShan , or "Fragrant Hills", alongside a separate effort to build [14]2,000 RISC-V-powered laptops by the end of 2022 – three years ahead of the admittedly larger-scale Russian project's schedule.
India, too, has been working towards independence from foreign technology firms as part of its "Atmanirbhar Bharat" programme for self-sufficiency, turning to RISC-V to power [15]a range of devices – including, it hopes, [16]supercomputers .
Yadro confirmed that its roadmap sees the RISC-V parts reaching to 2023 and beyond, but could not comment on pricing or availability – "especially," Galybina told us, "given all the uncertainty on the semiconductor market today."
Rostec did not respond to a request for comment. ®
Get our [17]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.vedomosti.ru/technology/articles/2021/07/14/878092-rosteh-razrabotaet-protsessori
[2] https://www.anandtech.com/show/16827/russia-to-build-riscv-processors-for-laptops-8core-2-ghz-12nm-2025
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2YPCv-3g2ZOr2PuE2Eq6uqAAAAAk&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44YPCv-3g2ZOr2PuE2Eq6uqAAAAAk&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33YPCv-3g2ZOr2PuE2Eq6uqAAAAAk&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44YPCv-3g2ZOr2PuE2Eq6uqAAAAAk&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2021/06/08/iscas_2000_riscv_laptops/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2021/07/06/xiangshan_risc_v/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2020/08/19/india_microprocessor_challenge_risc_v/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2015/05/11/allrussian_elbrus_pcs_and_servers_go_on_sale/
[11] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33YPCv-3g2ZOr2PuE2Eq6uqAAAAAk&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2015/05/11/allrussian_elbrus_pcs_and_servers_go_on_sale/
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2021/07/06/xiangshan_risc_v/
[14] https://www.theregister.com/2021/06/08/iscas_2000_riscv_laptops/
[15] https://www.theregister.com/2020/08/19/india_microprocessor_challenge_risc_v/
[16] https://www.theregister.com/2020/10/13/india_supercomputer_self_sufficiency/
[17] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
A report in local newspaper [1]Ведомости , first spotted in the west by [2]AnandTech , pointed to state-owned Rostec providing up to 30bn rubles (around $400m, £290m) in backing to Yadro and Syntacore to build a range of devices featuring RISC-V chips.
But Yadro's public relations lead, Daria Galybina, told The Register it had been the subject of a "miscommunication on the part of Russian media."
[3]
Galybina clarified Rostec's involvement as being limited to tapping Yadro as one of several vendors of workstation components for a national digitalisation programme which will see the organisation distributing 60,000 systems a year – but "nothing is signed yet."
[4]
[5]
"Rostec would not work [with us] on RISC-V processors," Galybina explained. "They announced that they are ready to buy our workstations, based on these processors. Both the RISC-V microprocessors and workstations are developed by Yadro, in close cooperation with Syntacor – part of Yadro – at our own funds."
The project is being led by a new subsidiary, Yadro Microprocessors, established last year following the company's acquisition of a majority share of Syntacore in 2019. It represents a shift in focus for the company. "Yadro is a key OpenPower Foundation member and one of largest contributors in the OpenPower hard and software ecosystem," Galybina told us.
[6]
"We leverage a full stack of technologies to address our partners' and customers' demand. Our wide product portfolio incorporates a whole variety of microprocessor architectures, including OpenPower, Intel x86, Arm, MIPS, and RISC-V is coming."
[7]China's ISCAS to build 2,000 RISC-V laptops by the end of 2022 as nation seeks to cut reliance on Arm, Intel chips
[8]Chinese chip designers hope to topple Arm's Cortex-A76 with XiangShan RISC-V design
[9]India selects RISC-V for semiconductor self-sufficiency contest: Use these homegrown cores to build kit
[10]All-Russian 'Elbrus' PCs and servers go on sale
There's no such shock to be found from Syntacore's involvement, though. The company was a founding member of RISC-V International, the not-for-profit organisation which oversees the RISC-V standards and works to encourage adoption and further development. Its first RISC-V parts were released in 2015, and its current product range spans 32-bit and 64-bit implementations – including a 32-bit open-source microcontroller core dubbed SCR1 MCU.
The parts developed by the Yadro Microprocessor group will, the company confirmed, include 12nm system-on-chip designs for single-board computers, tablets, workstations, and servers, launching under the Yadro EL product line – starting with a single-board computer dubbed the EL Construct DevKit, which uses a Syntacore SCR7 processor with four RISC-V cores running at 1.5GHz.
The EL Construct T, meanwhile, is based on Syntacore's upcoming SCR9 design with eight energy-efficiency cores running between 1.5GHz and 2GHz, coprocessors for graphics, video, and image processing, and built-in USB Type-C connectivity – ideal for its target market of tablets.
The flagship parts, and the ones which have drawn Rostec's eye, are dubbed EL Suprema. Starting at 12nm, with a view to moving to 7nm or 6nm process nodes in a future release, the chips will offer up to 64 Syntacore SCR9 RISC-V cores running between 2.5GHz and 3GHz, alongside extensions for virtualization and vector operations.
[11]
This won't be Russia's first look at making a processor for the local market, mind you: the Moscow Centre of SPARC Technologies opened its order books for desktops and servers built around [12]native Elbrus chips in 2015 following the release of the first Elbrus chip, Elbrus 2000, in 2001. The latest design, Elbrus-16S, was unveiled in 2019 as a 16-core part running at 2GHz on a 16nm process – putting it at an equal clock speed to the planned RISC-V chips with twice the cores to boot.
The news comes as China becomes increasingly focused on RISC-V, most recently supporting work on a high-performance processor family dubbed [13]XiangShan , or "Fragrant Hills", alongside a separate effort to build [14]2,000 RISC-V-powered laptops by the end of 2022 – three years ahead of the admittedly larger-scale Russian project's schedule.
India, too, has been working towards independence from foreign technology firms as part of its "Atmanirbhar Bharat" programme for self-sufficiency, turning to RISC-V to power [15]a range of devices – including, it hopes, [16]supercomputers .
Yadro confirmed that its roadmap sees the RISC-V parts reaching to 2023 and beyond, but could not comment on pricing or availability – "especially," Galybina told us, "given all the uncertainty on the semiconductor market today."
Rostec did not respond to a request for comment. ®
Get our [17]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.vedomosti.ru/technology/articles/2021/07/14/878092-rosteh-razrabotaet-protsessori
[2] https://www.anandtech.com/show/16827/russia-to-build-riscv-processors-for-laptops-8core-2-ghz-12nm-2025
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2YPCv-3g2ZOr2PuE2Eq6uqAAAAAk&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44YPCv-3g2ZOr2PuE2Eq6uqAAAAAk&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33YPCv-3g2ZOr2PuE2Eq6uqAAAAAk&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44YPCv-3g2ZOr2PuE2Eq6uqAAAAAk&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2021/06/08/iscas_2000_riscv_laptops/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2021/07/06/xiangshan_risc_v/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2020/08/19/india_microprocessor_challenge_risc_v/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2015/05/11/allrussian_elbrus_pcs_and_servers_go_on_sale/
[11] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33YPCv-3g2ZOr2PuE2Eq6uqAAAAAk&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2015/05/11/allrussian_elbrus_pcs_and_servers_go_on_sale/
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2021/07/06/xiangshan_risc_v/
[14] https://www.theregister.com/2021/06/08/iscas_2000_riscv_laptops/
[15] https://www.theregister.com/2020/08/19/india_microprocessor_challenge_risc_v/
[16] https://www.theregister.com/2020/10/13/india_supercomputer_self_sufficiency/
[17] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/