Guest Lecture: The Cell Processor and Related Industry Processor Trends

Peter Hofstee, IBM (Cell/B.E. Chief Scientist)
Abstract: In this talk I explore gaming as a force for developing high-performance processors and systems. The demand for ever increasing realism in games and entertainment is one of the strongest forces if not the strongest force, driving technology companies today in the development of high-performance processors. The gaps between processors designed for these spaces, and those designed for more conventional computing are closing rapidly, with GPUs driven more by GPGPU applications and CPUs evolving towards C/GPUs. We will explore some of these trends and discuss how the HPC community can best leverage these technologies to their advantage and can help drive their future.