Table of contents:
- What is GPU, CPU and NPU and what are their differences?
- NPU, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and Deep Learning
CPU, GPU and now NPU. For some time now, the various telephone manufacturers have emphasized a new component hitherto unknown to most. NPU, or better said, Neural Processing Unit or Neutral Processing Unit, is a component that directly interferes in activities related to Artificial Intelligence. But what is NPU really and what differentiates it from CPU and GPU? We see it below.
What is GPU, CPU and NPU and what are their differences?
What we know as CPU and GPU are two of the most important components of a computer and a smartphone. Roughly speaking, the CPU is the unit in charge of processing all the information related to data from applications, programs and system processes anchored in the background.
On a physical plane it is nothing more than a unit that solves mathematical operations and interprets them in the form of instructions. As with other components, the higher the frequency and the cores, the higher the performance as it has more capacity to process information.
Regarding the GPU, the Graphics Processing Unit is intended to process all the information related to 3D and 2D graphics. Since today's interfaces are based on complex 2D and 3D maps, the team requires a second unit to work with the data in a solvent way.
In addition to games and videos, the GPU is extremely useful for managing system animations and high-quality video recording, among other more superficial tasks.
So what is the NPU for? This component is intended to receive the instructions from the CPU that require the use of Artificial Intelligence to be processed much more efficiently, and its operation tries to similar the functions of a brain.
The functions of which the NPU is responsible have to do with the resolution of a high amount of mathematical calculations in a short period of time. The key to this type of chip is based on speed and energy efficiency, with much greater travel than CPUs and GPUs.
NPU, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and Deep Learning
We have already seen what is NPU and what is its main function, but what tasks require use of the NPU and what is its actual application on a mobile phone? To go into detail, we will first have to know what Artificial Intelligence, Marchine Learning and Deep Learning are.
The first concept has to do, on a physical level, with all activity that varies depending on the use of a certain type of software. And it is that while the CPU and the GPU solve operations that are predefined by the system, the NPU solves calculations that can vary depending on the user.
These calculations can be related to the processing of photographs in portrait mode, the stabilization of a video in real time, the calculation in 3D of the distance of various objects through the camera or the prediction of the language on the keyboard. Tasks that, in short, require the resolution of variable calculations in a very short period of time.
But the real key to Artificial Intelligence has to do precisely with Machine Learning. This term refers to the ability of a certain type of system to learn the habits of use of a device over time. The NPU is precisely in charge of solving these habits and acting accordingly. Activate certain functions at a specific time, speed up the loading of applications that we use the most on a mobile phone, predict emoticons on the keyboard, adjust battery use depending on the time of day…
So what is deep learning? This concept is without a doubt the most interesting of the three. Deep Learning refers to the NPU operations that do not need human intervention to be solved.
Its operation is more similar to that of a brain and an encephalon than that of a processor per se , being capable of solving equations without having to be set by the user, but by the environment. At the moment its application is not very widespread in current mobile systems, so it will be necessary to wait for Android and iOS to implement functions aimed at Deep Learning to adjust all the software to the needs of the user without the user actively intervening.
