NTT Announces AI Inference Chip for Real-Time 4K Video Processing

NTT Corporation (NTT) announced a new, large-scale integration (LSI) for the real-time AI inference processing of ultra-high-definition video up to 4K-resolution and 30 frames per second (fps). This low-power technology is designed for edge and power-constrained terminal deployments in which conventional AI inferencing requires the compression of ultra-high-definition video for real-time processing.

For example, when this LSI is installed on a drone, the drone can detect individuals or objects from up to 150 meters (492 feet) above the ground, the legal maximum altitude of drone flight in Japan, whereas conventional real-time AI video inferencing technology would limit that drone’s operations to about 30 meters (98 feet). One use case includes advancing drone-based infrastructure inspection for operations beyond an operator’s visual line of sight, reducing labor and costs.

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“The combination of low-power AI inferencing with ultra-high-definition video holds an enormous amount of potential, from infrastructure inspection to public safety to live sporting events,” said Kazu Gomi, president and CEO of NTT Research. “NTT’s LSI, which we believe to be the first of its kind to achieve such results, represents an important step forward in enabling AI inference at the edge and for power-constrained terminals.”

In edge and power-constrained terminals, AI devices are limited to power consumption an order of magnitude lower than that of GPUs used in AI servers; tens of watts by the former compared to hundreds of watts by the latter. The LSI overcomes these restraints by implementing an NTT-created AI inference engine. This engine reduces computational complexity while ensuring detection accuracy, improving computing efficiency using interframe correlation and dynamic bit-precision control. Executing the object detection algorithm You Only Look Once (YOLOv3) using this LSI is possible with a power consumption of less than 20 watts.

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NTT plans to commercialize this LSI within fiscal year 2025 through its operating company NTT Innovative Devices Corporation. NTT announced and demonstrated this LSI at Upgrade, the company’s annual research and innovation summit. Upgrade 2025 is being held in San Francisco April 9-10, 2025.

Looking ahead, researchers are studying the application of this LSI to the data-centric infrastructure (DCI) of the Innovative Optical and Wireless Network (IOWN) Initiative led by NTT and the IOWN Global Forum. DCI leverages the high-speed and low-latency capabilities of the IOWN All-Photonics Network to address the challenges of modern networking infrastructure including obstacles to scalability, limitations in performance and high energy consumption.

Additionally, NTT researchers are collaborating with NTT DATA, Inc. on the advancement of this LSI in relation to its proprietary Attribute-Based Encryption (ABE) technologies. ABE enables fine-grained access control and flexible policy setting at the data layer, with shared-secret encryption technologies allowing for secure data sharing that can be integrated into existing applications and data stores.