AI Chipmaker Hailo Launches Top-Performing M.2 and Mini PCIe AI Acceleration Modules to Enhance Performance of Edge Devices

Hailo’s AI modules outperform Intel’s Myriad-X modules by 26x and Google’s Edge TPUs by 13x Frames Per Second (FPS) on average across multiple standard Neural Network (NN) benchmarks

[Tel Aviv, Israel, September 30, 2020] – Leading AI chipmaker Hailo announced today the launch of its M.2 and Mini PCIe high-performance AI acceleration modules for empowering edge devices. Integrating the Hailo-8^TM processor, the modules can be plugged into a variety of edge devices, transforming multiple sectors with superior AI capabilities, including smart cities, smart retail, industry 4.0, smart homes, and beyond.

The modules enable customers to integrate high performance AI capabilities into edge devices, providing a more flexible and optimized solution for accelerating a large range of Deep Learning-based applications with high efficiency – optimizing time to market with a standard form factor.

Hailo’s AI acceleration modules seamlessly integrate into standard frameworks, such as TensorFlow and ONNX, which are both supported by Hailo’s comprehensive Dataflow Compiler. Customers can quickly port their Neural Networks (NNs) into the Hailo-8 processor, ensuring high-performance, enabling smarter AI products, and accelerating time-to-market.

The game-changing plug-in solutions come at a time when industries are increasingly utilizing edge devices that are both high-performing and cost-effective. For example, fanless AI edge boxes are in high demand as they allow many cameras or sensors to be connected to a single intelligent processing device in outdoor deployment. Hailo’s modules – with their high-performing Hailo-8 AI processor delivering 26 Tera-Operations Per Second (TOPS) and high-power efficiency of 3 TOPS/W – can be plugged into any existing edge device with the appropriate M.2 or Mini PCIe sockets, delivering unprecedented performance while reducing latency and improving privacy.

A comparison between the Hailo-8 average Frames Per Second (FPS) with competitors across multiple standard NN benchmarks (based on the latest published figures) shows that Hailo’s AI modules achieve a FPS rate 26x higher than Intel’s Myriad-X⁽¹⁾ modules and 13x higher than Google’s Edge TPU⁽²⁾ modules.

Figure-1: Hailo-8 vs. Intel Myriad-X⁽¹⁾ and Google Edge TPU⁽²⁾ 

Performance across common Neural Network benchmarks

“Manufacturers across industries understand how crucial it is to integrate AI capabilities into their edge devices. Simply put, solutions without AI can no longer compete,” said Orr Danon, CEO of Hailo. “Our new Hailo-8 M.2 and Mini PCIe modules will empower companies worldwide to create new powerful, cost-efficient, innovative AI-based products with a short time-to-market – while staying within the systems’ thermal constraints. The high efficiency and top performance of Hailo’s modules are a true gamechanger for the edge market.”

The Hailo-8 M.2 module is already integrated into the next generation of Foxconn’s “BOXiedge™” with no redesign required for the PCB. The solution provides market-leading energy efficiency for standalone AI inference nodes, benefiting applications including smart cities, smart retail, industry 4.0, and smart medical.

“The integration of Hailo’s M.2 AI module into our BOXiedge is revolutionizing our next-generation edge computing devices and will enable us to continue supporting our mission to create innovative, efficient, and competitive products for the electronics industry,” said Dr. Gene Liu, VP of Semiconductor Subgroup at Foxconn Technology Group. “Hailo’s M.2 and Mini PCIe modules, together with the high-performance Hailo-8 AI chip, will allow many rapidly evolving industries to adopt advanced technologies in a very short time, ushering in a new generation of high performance, low power, and smarter AI-based solutions.”

The Hailo-8 AI modules are already being integrated by select customers worldwide. More information on the Hailo-8 M.2 and Mini PCIe AI modules can be found here.

Main photo: Orr Danon CEO of Hailo. Source -Hailo