Scientists introduce Taichi-II, an updated version of an entirely light-based AI chip that could be used for future general AI (AGI) systems.
The first Taichi chip was introduced by researchers in April 2024. Instead of relying on electronics, the tiny, modular device is powered by photons, or particles of light. These photons operate tiny electrical switches that turn on and off when voltage is applied. Compared to its predecessor, the Taichi-II is 40 percent more efficient at classification tasks, which involve sorting and recognizing different types of information, and is six times more energy efficient in low-light conditions.
The team achieved the performance leap by training the AI directly on the optical chip instead of relying on digital simulations, a process the scientists call “full feedforward mode.” They detailed the research in the journal Nature, Live Science August 29 news.
Fully feedforward mode is an AI training method in which data moves forward in a single direction, as opposed to traditional methods where data is processed in multiple iterations. As light passes through the chip, it interacts with tiny components that help adjust its direction as well as its phase and intensity. This process causes instantaneous changes to the AI model’s parameters, allowing it to learn in real time without the need for iterative processing.
The all-forward mode makes photon chips even faster than before. These chips have several major advantages over conventional chips. Light-based chips consume much less energy and can perform calculations much faster than conventional chips because they process multiple signals at once. This is because, unlike electrons, photons can travel at the speed of light and do not generate heat as they pass through the chip, leading to faster and more efficient processing.
The Taichi chip works similarly to other light-based chips, but it can scale much better than its competitors by incorporating some of the advantages of existing photon chips, including optical diffraction.
The AI chip, which runs entirely on light, could be used to power AGI, a powerful AI system that has human-like intelligence and thinking, with the ability to learn new skills beyond training data. While the technology is still years away, Taichi’s developers say the chip’s modular design means multiple chips can be used to build powerful AI systems.