Power9 Gives IBM Leg Up Against x86 

After offering OpenPower Summit attendees a limited preview in April, IBM is unveiling further details of its next-gen CPU, Power9, which the tech mainstay is counting on to regain market share ceded to rival Intel. Built on GlobalFoundries 14nm finFET process technology, Power9 will be the centerpiece in Power-based servers starting in the second half of 2017. The highlight of the release is a brand new core and chip architecture that IBM has optimized for technical/HPC workloads, hyperscale, analytics and machine learning applications.

Although system availability hasn’t been announced yet, IBM has already landed a major win for its forthcoming Power9 platform. Back in November 2014, IBM, Mellanox and Nvidia were tapped to provide the DOE with two ~200-petaflops machines: Summit and Sierra. The $325 million contract specifies that the machines will employ Power9 CPUs and Volta GPUs when they come online next year.

IBM also has buy-in from Google, no small proof point in an era when hyperscalers exert substantial influence on the market.

See the full story at sister site HPCwire.com

About the author: George Leopold

George Leopold has written about science and technology for more than 30 years, focusing on electronics and aerospace technology. He previously served as executive editor of Electronic Engineering Times. Leopold is the author of "Calculated Risk: The Supersonic Life and Times of Gus Grissom" (Purdue University Press, 2016).