News Overview
- Bolt Graphics, a semiconductor startup based in Sunnyvale, California, has announced its new GPU, Zeus, which reportedly offers up to 10 times faster rendering and 6 times higher FP64 performance compared to existing GPUs.
- The Zeus GPU is designed for high-performance workloads, including rendering, high-performance computing (HPC), and gaming, with support for up to 2.25TB of memory per unit.
Original article link: This GPU vendor I’ve never heard of claims its card is 10x faster than an Nvidia RTX 5090 at real time path tracing
In-Depth Analysis
Zeus GPU Architecture and Performance
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Rendering and Path Tracing: Zeus reportedly delivers up to 10 times faster rendering performance, achieving 154 Gigarays per second in path tracing workloads, compared to 17 Gigarays for NVIDIA’s RTX 4090 and 32 Gigarays for the RTX 5090.
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FP64 Compute Performance: The GPU offers 10 TFLOPS in FP64 compute performance, significantly surpassing the RTX 4090’s 1.4 TFLOPS and RTX 5090’s 1.6 TFLOPS.
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Memory Capacity: Zeus supports up to 384GB per PCIe card and up to 2.25TB per 2U server unit, with potential rack configurations reaching 180TB.
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Connectivity: The GPU integrates 400 GbE and 800 GbE Ethernet interfaces directly into its architecture, enhancing data throughput and reducing latency.
Technical Specifications
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Core Architecture: Based on a RISC-V RVA23 out-of-order scalar core, Zeus features multiple architectural configurations, including single-chiplet designs like the Zeus 1c26-032.
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Display and Network Interfaces: Supports DisplayPort 2.1a, HDMI 2.1b, RJ45 BMC ports, QSFP-DD ports for 400GbE, and dual PCIe Gen5 x16 slots.
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Memory Types: Equipped with 32GB of LPDDR5X and up to 128GB of DDR5 memory.
Commentary
Bolt Graphics’ introduction of the Zeus GPU represents a bold entry into the competitive GPU market, dominated by established players like NVIDIA and AMD. The claimed performance metrics, particularly in rendering and FP64 computations, suggest a potential shift in high-performance computing capabilities. However, as a newcomer, Bolt Graphics faces challenges in gaining market trust and demonstrating real-world performance and reliability. The substantial memory support and integrated high-speed networking could appeal to data centers and enterprises seeking scalable solutions. Yet, widespread adoption will depend on successful benchmarking, software compatibility, and competitive pricing strategies.