Overview
A Neural Processing Unit (NPU) is a specialized microprocessor designed to accelerate the performance of neural networks and machine learning tasks. Unlike general-purpose CPUs, NPUs are architected to handle the massive parallel processing required for AI workloads.
Key Characteristics
- Parallelism: Designed to perform thousands of operations simultaneously.
- Low Power Consumption: Optimized for efficiency, making them ideal for mobile devices and edge computing.
- Dedicated AI Logic: Includes hardware-level support for common AI operations like convolutions and activations.
Applications
- On-device image and voice recognition.
- Real-time language translation in smartphones.
- Autonomous driving systems.