Hailo announced the launch of its M.2 and Mini PCIe high-performance AI acceleration modules for empowering edge devices. Integrating the Hailo-8 processor, the modules can be plugged into a variety of edge devices, transforming multiple sectors with superior AI capabilities including smart cities, smart retail, industry 4.0, smart homes, and beyond.

The modules enable customers to integrate high performance AI capabilities into edge devices, providing a more flexible and optimized solution for accelerating a large range of Deep Learning-based applications with high efficiency – optimizing time to market with a standard form factor.

Hailo’s AI acceleration modules seamlessly integrate into standard frameworks, such as TensorFlow and ONNX, which are both supported by Hailo’s comprehensive Dataflow Compiler. Customers can quickly port their Neural Networks (NNs) into the Hailo-8 processor, ensuring high-performance, enabling smarter AI products, and accelerating time-to-market.

The game-changing plug-in solutions come at a time when industries are increasingly utilizing edge devices that are both high-performing and cost-effective. For example, fanless AI edge boxes are in high demand as they allow many cameras or sensors to be connected to a single intelligent processing device in outdoor deployment. Hailo’s modules – with their high-performing Hailo-8 AI processor delivering 26 Tera-Operations Per Second (TOPS) and high-power efficiency of 3 TOPS/W – can be plugged into any existing edge device with the appropriate M.2 or Mini PCIe sockets, delivering unprecedented performance while reducing latency and improving privacy.

A comparison between the Hailo-8 average Frames Per Second (FPS) with competitors across multiple standard NN benchmarks (based on the latest published figures) shows that Hailo’s AI modules achieve an FPS rate 26x higher than Intel’s Myriad-X(1) modules and 13x higher than Google’s Edge TPU(2) modules.

The Hailo-8 M.2 module is already integrated into the next generation of Foxconn’s “BOXiedge” with no redesign required for the PCB. The solution provides market-leading energy efficiency for standalone AI inference nodes, benefiting applications including smart cities, smart retail, industry 4.0, and smart medical.

The Hailo-8 AI modules are already being integrated by select customers worldwide. More information on the Hailo-8 M.2 and Mini PCIe AI modules can be found here.

Hailo, an AI-focused, Israel-based chipmaker, has developed a specialized AI processor that delivers the performance of a data center-class computer to edge devices. Hailo’s processor is the product of a rethinking of traditional computer architecture, enabling smart devices to perform sophisticated deep learning tasks such as object detection and segmentation in real-time, with minimal power consumption, size, and cost. The processor is designed to fit into a multitude of smart machines and devices, impacting a variety of sectors including automotive, industry 4.0, smart cities, smart homes, and retail.  The company was founded in 2017 by members of the Israel Defense Forces’ elite technology unit.