Today, Lenovo announced the introduction of ThinkShield Firmware Assurance as part of its portfolio of enterprise-grade cybersecurity solutions. ThinkShield Firmware Assurance is one of the only computer OEM solutions to enable deep visibility and protection below the operating system (OS) by embracing Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA) component-level visibility to generate more accurate and actionable risk management insights.

As a security paradigm, ZTA explicitly identifies users and devices to grant appropriate levels of access so a business can operate with less risk and minimal friction. ZTA is a critical framework to reduce risk as organizations endeavor to complete Zero-Trust implementations.

Microsoft is introducing Windows 365 Link, a compact cloud PC for business users. The device costs $349 and measures just 120 x 120 x 30 mm, making it smaller than Apple's Mac mini. The compact size comes from the fanless cooling design and the fact that the device doesn't have local storage capabilities. This small computer has quite a variety of connectivity options, including one USB-C, three USB-A ports, HDMI, DisplayPort, and Ethernet connections, supports two 4K monitors, and has Bluetooth 5.3 and Wi-Fi 6E wireless capabilities. The specific hardware details are not yet revealed by Microsoft.

It requires Windows 365 with Microsoft Intune and Entra ID, and it works with 365 Frontline, Enterprise, and Business editions. As with other cloud-based solutions, Microsoft will lock some of the security options, "features like Secure Boot, the dedicated Trusted Platform Module, Hypervisor Code Integrity, BitLocker encryption, and the Microsoft Defender for Endpoint detection and response sensor can't be turned off, further helping to secure the device". Microsoft plans to launch the device in April 2025, with early previews in the US, Canada, UK, Germany, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. Businesses interested in testing the device can contact their Microsoft account team before December 15, 2024, to join the preview program.

The age of automation is upon us. Anthropic, the company behind top-performing Claude large language models that compete directly with OpenAI GPT, has today announced updates to its models and a new feature—computer use. The computer use allows Claude 3.5 Sonnet model to access the user's system by looking at the screen, moving the cursor, typing text, and clicking buttons. While only being experimental for now, the system is prone to errors and creating "dumb" mistakes. However, it allows for one very important feature: driving the operating system designed for humans using artificial intelligence.

There is a benchmark that evaluates AI model's ability to use computers like a human does on human-centered operating system. Called OSWorld, the Claude 3.5 Sonnet model has managed to score 14.9% in screenshot-only category, and 22.0% in some other tasks that require more steps. A typical human scores around 72.36% in this testing, which proves to be difficult even for natural intelligence. However, this is only the beginning as these models advance rapidly. Usually, these models work with other types of data, like text and static images, where they process it and do computation based on it. Working on computers designed for human interaction first is a great leap in the capabilities of AI models.

The EuroHPC Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU) has signed a purchase agreement with IQM Quantum Computers (IQM), a global leader in designing, building, and selling superconducting quantum computers. Under the agreement, IQM will deliver two advanced Radiance quantum systems of 54 qubits and 150 qubits in the second half of 2025 and by the end of 2026, respectively.

The two distinct systems, featuring high-quality qubits and industry-leading fidelities will play a pivotal role in executing quantum algorithms across a range of application domains.

Micro Center, a leading national computer and electronic device retailer, has relaunched the online presence of its PowerSpec brand, a trusted name in high-performance desktop PCs. The newly redesigned PowerSpec.com offers an enhanced user experience tailored to meet the needs of gamers, professionals, and tech enthusiasts alike.

Since 1992, PowerSpec has been at the forefront of delivering powerful, adaptable, and upgradeable PCs backed by Micro Center's industry-leading customer service. The revamped website reflects PowerSpec's commitment to quality, innovation, and customer satisfaction by offering streamlined navigation, detailed product information, and easy access to essential drivers and support resources.

The Revodok series is a collection of superior models from Ugreen hubs and docking stations. With the name Revodok, we hope to bring higher productivity and the better experience to users.

Revodok Thunderbolt 5 docking station is the latest product of Revodok series that will be shown at the IFA exhibition. Thunderbolt 5 docking station could deliver 80 of bi-directional bandwidth, and with Bandwidth Boost it will provide up to 120 Gbps for the best display experience, offering higher data transfer rates and more powerful video output capabilities compared to Thunderbolt 4 docks.

Cooler Master, a leading provider of PC components, gaming peripherals, and tech lifestyle solutions, today announced the Shark X, a groundbreaking pre-built PC that redefines the boundaries between performance, design, and art. The Shark X delivers an exceptional computing experience while standing as a bold statement piece inspired by the ocean's mightiest and most efficient predator.

"The Shark X is not just a high-performance PC—it's a masterpiece that brings art and technology together, reflecting Cooler Master's commitment to innovative design and engineering," said Jimmy Sha, CEO of Cooler Master.

Newegg Commerce, Inc., a leading global e-commerce company specializing in computers and consumer electronics, today announced that its CPU Trade-In program is now live on Newegg.com. As the latest addition to the GPU Trade-In program launched last year, Newegg's CPU Trade-In program enables customers to trade their used CPUs in exchange for credit toward an entirely new CPU from Newegg.

About the CPU Trade-In Program
A CPU, often referred to as the brain of a computer, enables PCs to process data and operations. When new units become available, users frequently opt to upgrade their system's CPU with newer, faster models capable of accommodating increasingly sophisticated software and programs. Newegg's trade-in program allows customers to trade in their existing aged CPUs for credit toward a new CPU.

Chinese tech company GMKtec is preparing to unveil a new Mini-PC powered by an AMD Ryzen processor, featuring an enhanced cooling system. The company's product lineup already includes a variety of AMD and Intel-based compact computers, with their K-series representing their most powerful offerings. Now, GMKtec teased a new addition to their lineup on Weibo, China's popular social media platform. The upcoming model will support a 70 W TDP and is likely to feature the Ryzen 9 8945HS processor, based on the "R9" mentioned in the post title. This distinction is important as the next-generation processors (Strix Point) use "Ryzen AI 9" branding.

A standout feature of this upcoming model is its vapor chamber cooling system, which is uncommon in the Mini-PC market. However, GMKtec hasn't mentioned the use of a secondary fan or other cooling features, which some competitors employ. The new Mini-PC will include an OCuLink connector for external device compatibility, including graphics cards. Other features include dual 2.5GbE networking, USB ports, HDMI 2.1 and DisplayPort 2.0 outputs. While full specifications are yet to be disclosed, more details are expected to be revealed in the near future. GMKtec has not announced a specific release date or price for this new Mini-PC.

Tenstorrent is launching their next generation Wormhole chip featuring PCIe cards and workstations designed for developers who are interested in scalability for multi-chip development using Tenstorrent's powerful open-source software stacks.

These Wormhole-based cards and systems are now available for immediate order on tenstorrent.com:

• Wormhole n150, powered by a single processor
• Wormhole n300, powered by two processors
• TT-LoudBox, a developer workstation powered by four Wormhole n300s (eight processors)

A Finnish company called Flow Computing is making some very bold claims when it comes to its new IP. The company has developed what it calls a Parallel Processing Unit or a PPU, which the company claims can boost the performance of any CPU by a hundred times its current performance. Furthermore, the company claims that its PPU can double the performance of any current code execution, with no need for any kind of optimisation for its PPU. The PPU can be integrated into new processors, but it can also be designed as a discrete chip that can be added to any current hardware and Flow Computing claims the performance benefits will be the same in both instances.

Flow Computing is a spinoff from the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland and the company emerged from stealth mode last week with around €4 million in funding. Flow Computing doesn't intend to make its PPU by itself, but instead, the company wants to licence its tech to third parties, to give everyone an equal opportunity to take advantage of what's on offer. At this point in time, Flow Computing hasn't made any custom silicon, instead the company has validated its PPU using an FPGA tested against various Intel CPUs. As such, there are numbers to back up its claims and we've provided links below to a whitepaper and an FAQ for those that are interested in doing a deep dive into its claims. Flow Computing appears to have a few different implementations of its PPU, ranging from 16 to 256 cores, with the latter being for high-end computers, but the basic is said to be suitable for something as basic as a smartwatch. Time will tell if Flow Computing will be able to deliver on its claims and it'll be an interesting company to follow.

At Computex 2024, Wizmax, a manufacturer of computer hardware such as cases, headphones, mice, etc., offered an interesting perspective on the inspiration for its computer cases. Diversifying from the regular sleek panels, Wizmax turned to more traditional art when designing its PC case lineup. Starting with the M60-Moon, the case brings a traditional Korean design pattern on its front bezel, carrying a touch of cultural elegance to modern PC setups. This ATX form factor case supports 410 mm-long GPUs and 160 mm-tall CPU coolers. It also includes room for a 360 mm front water cooler, ensuring adequate airflow and cooling performance.

The 63rd edition of the TOP500 reveals that Frontier has once again claimed the top spot, despite no longer being the only exascale machine on the list. Additionally, a new system has found its way into the Top 10.

The Frontier system at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, USA remains the most powerful system on the list with an HPL score of 1.206 EFlop/s. The system has a total of 8,699,904 combined CPU and GPU cores, an HPE Cray EX architecture that combines 3rd Gen AMD EPYC CPUs optimized for HPC and AI with AMD Instinct MI250X accelerators, and it relies on Cray's Slingshot 11 network for data transfer. On top of that, this machine has an impressive power efficiency rating of 52.93 GFlops/Watt - putting Frontier at the No. 13 spot on the GREEN500.

AMD has reached a significant milestone, capturing a record-high share of the X86 CPU market in the first quarter of 2024, according to the latest report from Mercury Research. This achievement marks a significant step forward for the chipmaker in its long battle against rival Intel's dominance in the crucial computer processor space. The surge was fueled by strong demand for AMD's Ryzen and EPYC processors across consumer and enterprise markets. The Ryzen lineup's compelling price-to-performance ratio has struck a chord with gamers, content creators, and businesses seeking cost-effective computing power without sacrificing capabilities. It secured AMD's 23.9% share, an increase from the previous Q4 of 2023, which has seen a 19.8% market share.

The company has also made major inroads on the data center front with its EPYC server CPUs. AMD's ability to supply capable yet affordable processors has enabled cloud providers and enterprises to scale operations on AMD's platform. Several leading tech giants have embraced EPYC, contributing to AMD's surging server market footprint. Now, it is at 23.6%, a significant increase over the past few years, whereas AMD was just above 10% four years ago in 2020. AMD lost some share to Intel on the mobile PC front due to the Meteor Lake ramp, but it managed to gain a small percentage of the market share of client PCs. As AMD rides the momentum into the second half of 2024, all eyes will be on whether the chipmaker can sustain this trajectory and potentially claim an even larger slice of the x86 CPU pie from Intel in the coming quarters.Below, you can see additional graphs of mobile PC and client PC market share.

NVIDIA today announced its next-generation AI supercomputer—the NVIDIA DGX SuperPOD powered by NVIDIA GB200 Grace Blackwell Superchips—for processing trillion-parameter models with constant uptime for superscale generative AI training and inference workloads.

Featuring a new, highly efficient, liquid-cooled rack-scale architecture, the new DGX SuperPOD is built with NVIDIA DGX GB200 systems and provides 11.5 exaflops of AI supercomputing at FP4 precision and 240 terabytes of fast memory—scaling to more with additional racks.

The HPC research projects DEEP-SEA, IO-SEA and RED-SEA are wrapping up this month after a three-year project term. The three projects worked together to develop key technologies for European Exascale supercomputers, based on the Modular Supercomputing Architecture (MSA), a blueprint architecture for highly efficient and scalable heterogeneous Exascale HPC systems. To achieve this, the three projects collaborated on system software and programming environments, data management and storage, as well as interconnects adapted to this architecture. The results of their joint work will be presented at a co-design workshop and poster session at the EuroHPC Summit (Antwerp, 18-21 March, www.eurohpcsummit.eu).

Tech giant Google is embroiled in a high-stakes legal battle over the alleged infringement of patents related to its Tensor Processing Units (TPUs), custom AI accelerator chips used to power machine learning applications. Massachusetts-based startup Singular Computing has accused Google of incorporating architectures described in several of its patents into the design of the TPU without permission. The disputed patents, first filed in 2009, outline computer architectures optimized for executing a high volume of low-precision calculations per cycle - an approach well-suited for neural network-based AI. In a 2019 lawsuit, Singular argues that Google knowingly infringed on these patents in developing its TPU v2 and TPU v3 chips introduced in 2017 and 2018. Singular Computing is seeking between $1.6 billion and $5.19 billion in damages from Google.

Google denies these claims, stating that its TPUs were independently developed over many years. The company is currently appealing to have Singular's patents invalidated, which would undermine the infringement allegations. The high-profile case highlights mounting legal tensions as tech giants race to dominate the burgeoning field of AI hardware. With billions in potential damages at stake, the outcome could have major implications for the competitive landscape in cloud-based machine learning services. As both sides prepare for court, the dispute underscores the massive investments tech leaders like Google make to integrate specialized AI accelerators into their cloud infrastructures. Dominance in this sphere is a crucial strategic advantage as more industries embrace data-hungry neural network applications.

Update 17:25 UTC: According to Reuters, Google and Singular Computing have settled the case with details remaining private for the time being.

With computation potential far beyond current supercomputers, quantum computers are the subject of enthusiastic research and development worldwide. In 2023, Academia Sinica successfully overcame various bottlenecks in the fabrication, control, and measurement of quantum chips. In October, the creation of a 5-qubit superconducting quantum computer developed in Taiwan marked a significant milestone. Starting this week, it will be made available online to project collaborators.

Dr. Chii Dong Chen, Distinguished Research Fellow at Academia Sinica's Institute of Physics and Research Center for Applied Sciences, noted that this project is part of the quantum technology special project funded by the National Science and Technology Council. Initially scheduled to build a 3-qubit quantum computer by February of 2024, Academia Sinica's research team surpassed the development schedule approved by the National Science and Technology Council and built a 5-qubit system by October of 2023. The fidelity of the quantum bit logic gates reached an impressive 99.9%.

Cyber Acoustics, a leading manufacturer of reliable and affordable computer peripherals used in schools, businesses, call centers, and homes, today announced the CA Essential Webcam Flex is now shipping and available on CyberAcoustics.com and Amazon.com.

The CA Essential Webcam Flex is the ideal tool to give powerful presentations, conduct authentic live interviews, lead captivating webinars and livestreams, or present engaging demonstrations, via a simple, unobtrusive webcam that's perfect for people spanning industries, professions, interests, and hobbies, as its unique design offers a more collaborative experience for any use.

The recent attacks on cargo ships in the Red Sea are affecting not only oil shipments, but also cargo ships from Asia to Europe. All major carriers such as CMA CGM, Cosco, Evergreen, Hapag-Lloyd, Maersk, MSC and so forth are affected and all have delayed their shipments through the area. A coordinated security action called Operations Prosperity Guardian which includes over half a dozen nations so far, is getting ready to guide shipments through the affected area by Yemen, but it'll lead to slower shipments through the area.

TechPowerUp has already received reports from sources in Taiwan that their products are on some of these ships that are now stuck waiting for naval escorts through the area. However, it appears that there might be shortages of some computer components for the foreseeable future, alongside many other products that are being shipped this route and onwards via the Suez Canal. According to the BBC, it takes 25.5 days on average to ship goods from Taiwan to the Netherlands via the Red Sea and Suez Canal whereas the only alternative route via the Cape of Good Hope takes 34 days and adds extra fuel costs. Regardless of the extra shipping times and costs, it appears some shipping companies are willing to take the longer route to avoid being attacked. This is likely to have a knock on effect on prices for a lot of consumer goods in Europe, so if you haven't bought that hardware you've been holding off getting, now might be as good a time as any.

The 62nd edition of the TOP500 reveals that the Frontier system retains its top spot and is still the only exascale machine on the list. However, five new or upgraded systems have shaken up the Top 10.

Housed at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in Tennessee, USA, Frontier leads the pack with an HPL score of 1.194 EFlop/s - unchanged from the June 2023 list. Frontier utilizes AMD EPYC 64C 2GHz processors and is based on the latest HPE Cray EX235a architecture. The system has a total of 8,699,904 combined CPU and GPU cores. Additionally, Frontier has an impressive power efficiency rating of 52.59 GFlops/watt and relies on HPE's Slingshot 11 network for data transfer.

Today, Lenovo announced the new ThinkStation P8 tower workstation powered by AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO 7000 WX-Series processors and NVIDIA RTX GPUs. Designed to deliver unparalleled performance, reliability and flexibility for professionals who demand the best from their workstations, the bold new ThinkStation P8 builds on the success of the award-winning P620, the world's first workstation powered by AMD Ryzen Threadripper PRO processors. Featuring an optimized thermal design in a versatile Aston Martin inspired chassis, the ThinkStation P8 combines Lenovo's legendary reliability, customer experience and innovation with breakthrough compute architecture courtesy of AMD and NVIDIA. ThinkStation P8 raises the bar for intense workloads across multiple segments focused on outcome-based workflow agility.

"At Lenovo, we understand that our customers need high-quality workstations that can adapt to their changing and diverse needs. That's why we collaborated with AMD and NVIDIA to create the ThinkStation P8, a workstation that combines power, flexibility and enterprise-grade features," said Rob Herman, vice president and general manager, Workstation and Client AI Business Unit, Lenovo. "Designed to offer unparalleled performance and scalability, whether to run complex simulations, render stunning visuals, or develop cutting-edge AI applications, the ThinkStation P8 can handle it all. And with Lenovo's certifications, security and support, you can trust that the ThinkStation P8 will exceed expectations."

Oxide Computer Company today unveiled the world's first commercial Cloud Computer, a true rack-scale system with fully unified hardware and software designed for on-premises cloud computing. The company also announced a $44 million Series A financing round led by Eclipse with participation from Intel Capital, Riot Ventures, Counterpart Ventures, and Rally Ventures to accelerate production for Fortune 1000 enterprises. This brings the company's total financing raised to date to $78 million.

Despite the rapid rise of cloud computing, the vast majority of IT infrastructure today continues to live outside the public cloud in on-premises data centers, where enterprises are forced to cobble together a set of disjointed hardware and software components to run their businesses. Since its inception, Oxide's mission has been to solve this problem, developing the first unified product that delivers the developer experience and operational efficiencies of the public cloud to on-premises environments.

Moore Threads Technology (MTT), a Chinese GPU manufacturer, is reportedly testing its next-generation graphics processors for client PCs and data centers. The products under scrutiny are the MTT S90 for client/gaming computers and the MTT S4000 for data centers. Characterized by their Device IDs, 0301 and 0323, this could imply that these GPUs belong to MTT's 3rd generation GPU lineup. While few details about these GPUs are available, the new Device IDs suggest a possible introduction of a novel microarchitecture following the MTT Chunxiao GPU series. The current generation Chunxiao series, featuring the MTT S70, MTT S80, and MTT S3000, failed to compete effectively with AMD, Intel, and NVIDIA GPUs.

Thanks to @Löschzwerg who found the Device Hunt submission, we see hardware identifiers in PCI ID and USB ID repositories earlier than launch, as this often signals the testing of new chips or drivers by various companies. In the case of MTT, the latest developments are complicated by its recent inclusion on the U.S. Entity List, limiting its access to US-made technologies. This introduces a problem for the company, as they can't access TSMC's facilities for chip production, and will have to turn to domestic production in the likely case, with SMIC being the only leading option to consider.

Ever since the creation of A64FX for the Fugaku supercomputer, Fujitsu has been plotting the development of next-generation CPU design for accelerating AI and general-purpose HPC workloads in the data center. Codenamed Monaka, the CPU is the latest creation for TSMC's 2 nm semiconductor manufacturing node. Based on Armv9-A ISA, the CPU will feature up to 150 cores with Scalable Vector Extensions 2 (SVE2), so it can process a wide variety of vector data sets in parallel. Using a 3D chiplet design, the 150 cores will be split into different dies and placed alongside SRAM and I/O controller. The current width of the SVE2 implementation is unknown.

The CPU is designed to support DDR5 memory and PCIe 6.0 connection for attaching storage and other accelerators. To bring cache coherency among application-specific accelerators, CXL 3.0 is present as well. Interestingly, Monaka is planned to arrive in FY2027, which starts in 2026 on January 1st. The CPU will supposedly use air cooling, meaning the design aims for power efficiency. Additionally, it is essential to note that Monaka is not a processor that will power the post-Fugaku supercomputer. The post-Fugaku supercomputer will use post-Monaka design, likely iterating on the design principles that Monaka uses and refining them for the launch of the post-Fugaku supercomputer scheduled for 2030. Below are the slides from Fujitsu's presentation, in Japenese, which highlight the design goals of the CPU.