Intel 推出第 3 代 Xeon Scalable 處理器加入 Crypto 加速與 DL Boost 帶給資料中心強大效能

Intel 推出第 3 代 Xeon Scalable 處理器加入 Crypto 加速與 DL Boost 帶給資料中心強大效能

從資料中心、雲端、網路到 AI，Intel 推出第 3 代 Xeon Scalable 處理器（“Ice Lake”)，採用 10nm 製程打造最高 40 核心，並有著 8 通道DDR4-3200 記憶體支援性，以及 64 lane PCIe Gen4 的擴充能力。而第 3 代 Intel Xeon 可擴充處理器，比起上一代效能有著顯著提升，於熱門資料中心工作負載提供平均 46％ 提升改善。處理器還增加新款與強化後的平台功能，包含內建安全性 Intel SGX ，以及 Intel Crypto Acceleration 和針對 AI 加速的 Intel DL Boost。

這些結合 Intel Select Solutions 和 Intel Market Ready Solutions 等英特爾廣泛產品組合的新功能，讓客戶能夠加速佈署橫跨雲端、AI、企業、HPC、網路、安全性與邊緣的各種應用。

內建 AI 加速：最新第 3 代 Intel Xeon 可擴充處理器提供 AI 效能、生產力、簡易性，讓客戶能夠洞悉他們的資料並解放更多具有價值的內容。相較前一世代可提升 74％ 快的 AI 效能；相較 AMD EPYC 7763，於廣泛應用的 20 項 AI 混合工作負載，最高提供 1.5 倍的效能：相較於Nvidia A100 GPU，於廣泛應用的 20 項 AI 混合工作負載，最高提供 1.3 倍的效能。

內建安全性：經過成千上萬的考察研究與生產佈署，加上隨著時間不斷淬鍊，Intel SGX 以系統內最小潛在攻擊面保護敏感程式碼與資料。如今可於雙插槽 Xeon 可擴充處理器的指定位址空間（enclave）使用，該指定位址空間能夠隔離與處理最高 1TB 的程式碼與資料，以便支援主流工作負載的需求。結合 Intel Total Memory Encryption 和 Intel Platform Firmware Resilience 在內的新功能。

內建加密加速：Intel®Crypto Acceleration 於許多重要的加密演算法提供突破性的性能。執行密集加密的商業模式能夠從此功能當中獲益，如每天處理數以百萬計消費交易的線上銷售，於保護消費者資料的同時，無需影響使用者回應時間或是整體系統效能。

此外，為加速第 3 代 Intel Xeon 可擴充平台的工作負載，軟體開發者能夠透過開放、跨架構程式設計的 oneAPI 最佳化他們的應用，從專利模式的技術和經濟負擔當中解放。Intel oneAPI 開發工具包透過進階編譯器、函式庫、分析與除錯工具，實現處理器的AI與加密功能和效能 。

領先業界的資料中心平台

市場最為普及的英特爾資料中心平台，具備無與倫比的移動、儲存與處理資料的能力。最新第 3 代Intel Xeon 可擴充平台包含 Intel Optane Persistent Memory 200 系列、Intel Optane Solid State Drive（SSD）P5800X 和 Intel SSD D5-P5316 NAND SSD，以及 Intel Ethernet 800 系列網路介面卡和最新的 Intel Agilex FPGA。上述可在第 3 代 Intel Xeon 可擴充平台產品資訊當中獲得更多資訊。

橫跨雲端、網路與智慧邊緣提供靈活效能

最新第 3 代Intel Xeon 可擴充平台為廣大範圍的市場區隔最佳化－從雲端到智慧邊緣。

為雲端而生：第 3 代 Intel Xeon 可擴充處理器為滿足雲端工作負載和支援大範圍服務環境的苛刻需求而打造並最佳化。全球超過 800 個雲端服務供應商於 Intel Xeon 可擴充處理器上執行，且所有最大的雲端服務供應商正計畫於 2021 年，由第 3 代 Intel Xeon 可擴充處理器支援其雲端服務。

為網路而生：英特爾的網路最佳化「N 版本」專為支援多樣的網路環境而設計，並為多種工作負載和性能水準最佳化。最新第 3 代 Intel Xeon 可擴充處理器相較前一世代，於一系列廣泛佈署的網路與 5G 工作負載，效能平均提升 62％。與超過 400 位 Intel Network Builders 成員的廣泛生態系一同工作，英特爾提供基於第 3 代 Intel Xeon 可擴充處理器「N 版本」的解決方案藍圖，進而加快 vRAN、NFVI、虛擬 CDN 等的測試認證並縮短佈署時間。

為智慧邊緣而生：第 3 代 Intel Xeon 可擴充處理器針對強而有力的 AI、複雜的影像或視訊分析，以及智慧邊緣整合工作負載，提供所需的效能、安全性和作業控制。相對於前一世代，平台為影像分類提供最高1.56倍的AI推論效能。

Coinbase: Possible ‘Significant’ drop in crypto prices this year like in 2018

Coinbase, the eight-year-old, privately held, San Francisco-based startup that is a trading platform for Bitcoin and other crypto-currencies, Tuesday evening announced its financial results for 2018, and said it foresees a wide range of scenarios for the market this year, including a sharp drop in price.

Bitcoin’s price has soared the past six months from $10,600 to over $57,000 U.S. dollars per Bitcoin, as companies such as Tesla, PayPal, and Square have emphasized buying reserves of the currency and making it possible for customers to transact in the currency.

Coinebase, which makes money off the volume of people transacting on its platform to buy and sell currencies, had 6.1 million transacting users, or MTUs, in the three months ended in March, it said.

To forecast this year, “Given the inherent unpredictability of our business […] we are providing a range of possible scenarios for full-year 2021,” the company said.

The “high” scenario sees the overall market capitalization of crypto continuing to increase, pushing up Coinbase’s MTUs to 7 million.

A “mid” scenario “assumes flat crypto market capitalization,” the company said, and “low to moderate volatility” in crypto prices. That would possibly reduce MTUs to 5.5 million, it said.

The “low” scenario would see a “significant decrease in crypto market capitalization, similar to the decrease observed in 2018,” the company said, “And low levels of crypto asset price volatility thereafter.

Bitcoin’s price in 2018 plunged from a high of over $19,000 per Bitcoin to under $4,000.

“In this scenario, we assume MTUs will decrease in a corresponding manner and end 2021 at similar levels to Q4 2020.”

As for its own results, the surge in crypto prices has been a boon to the company’s volume of business. Coinbase had $335 billion worth of trading volume on its platform in the March quarter, producing $1.8 billion in revenue. The company expects $700 million to $800 million of net income from that activity.

Coinbase has received $539 million in venture capital financing since 2015 from firms that include AH Capital Management LLC, Manhattan Venture Partners, Y Combinator, and Initialized Capital Management.

The Crypto Council for Innovation Launches With Industry-Leading Member Organizations

Bloomberg

(Bloomberg) – In an era of prosperity for investment banks, Credit Suisse Group AG is careening from one crisis to another and then another – this time, with a $4.7 billion writedown tied to billionaire investor Bill Hwang’s trading blowout.The staggering hit – the largest yet linked to market-shaking losses run up by Hwang’s Archegos Capital Management – prompted sweeping management changes at the Swiss bank Tuesday and cast fresh doubt on its checkered record of managing risks. It caps a catalog of costly errors at Credit Suisse – most recently the collapse of Greensill Capital – in what was supposed to be the start of steadier era under Chief Executive Officer Thomas Gottstein.At a moment when investment banks are feasting on market activity and dealmaking, Credit Suisse is under mounting pressure to persuade shareholders and clients it can put its house in order and remain a vital, independent force in global banking. After the firm announced plans to cut its dividend and suspend share buybacks, analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their recommendation for the stock, which already was breaking with peers in tumbling this year.“The ongoing negative newsflow could have an impact on the remainder” of Credit Suisse’s businesses, analysts Kian Abouhossein and Amit Ranjan wrote in a note, lowering their rating to neutral from overweight. “Besides the impact from various management changes and regulatory oversight,” they wrote, the bank “might have to pursue a strategy of ‘capital preservation’” that could restrain growth.David Herro at Harris Associates, a top shareholder of Credit Suisse, said the bank’s losses should serve as a “wakeup call” to expedite cultural change as Chairman Urs Rohner prepares to hand over to Lloyds Banking Group Plc CEO Antonio Horta-Osorio at the end of the month. Rohner has offered to forgo his compensation for 2020 of 1.5 million francs.Another long-standing backer of the bank, Qatar’s former prime minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim Al Thani, stands to suffer a personal hit as well after vehicles linked to him invested about $200 million in funds Credit Suisse ran with Greensill, according to people familiar with the matter. As former head of the Qatar Investment Authority, Sheik Hamad had made Qatar one of the Swiss bank’s largest shareholders.Acknowledging the need for deep change, Credit Suisse on Tuesday replaced its investment bank head and chief risk officer, along with a handful of other executives. Gottstein, who took over in February last year after a spying scandal toppled his predecessor, told the Neue Zuercher Zeitung that the bank has no sacred cows with regard to strategy.“Serious lessons will be learned,” he pledged in a statement. The Archegos loss “is unacceptable.”While the Swiss bank wasn’t the only firm that helped Hwang’s family office lever up large positions in a relatively small slate of stocks, rivals including Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Deutsche Bank AG managed to unwind their exposures quickly with minimal damage.Credit Suisse has now offloaded the bulk of its Archegos exposure, helped by a $2.3 billion sale this week. But the impact of that latest disposal and any remaining positions could affect second-quarter results, according to a person with knowledge of the matter.The dual hits from Archegos and Greensill have put the bank on track for its second straight quarterly loss, at a time when investment banks around the world are still focused on the windfall unleashed by the market turmoil of the coronavirus pandemic. The five largest U.S. firms boosted trading revenue by more than a third last year to the highest in at least a decade.JPMorgan’s Wall Street unit generated its most fourth-quarter revenue and profit ever. Deutsche Bank is among firms that have said their investment banks are off to a strong start this year. And Jefferies Financial Group Inc. already reported an 81% jump in revenue from capital markets in the fiscal first quarter that ended Feb. 28.In an update on its underlying businesses Tuesday, Credit Suisse noted that issues such as Archegos were negating the “very strong performance that had otherwise been achieved by our investment banking businesses” as well as higher profits in wealth and asset management units.The firm is still set to give an update on the effect of last month’s collapse of Greensill Capital, which helped manage $10 billion of investment funds the Swiss bank offered to asset management clients. Credit Suisse is leaning toward letting clients take the hit of expected losses in those funds, a person familiar with the discussions said.Among the executives to leave over the missteps are investment bank head Brian Chin and risk chief Lara Warner. Gottstein previously removed Eric Varvel from his role running asset management after Greensill’s downfall. In a memo to staff Monday, Credit Suisse also announced at least five other departures, including equities trading chief Paul Galietto.Christian Meissner, the former Bank of America Corp. executive who joined Credit Suisse in October, will take over from Chin next month. Joachim Oechslin will become risk chief in the interim, a role he held until 2019 when Warner took over. Thomas Grotzer was named interim head of compliance.The bank cut its dividend proposal for 2020 to 10 centimes a share, from about 29 centimes, and suspended its share buyback until its common equity Tier 1 ratio, a key measure of capital strength, returns to the targeted level. Credit Suisse said it expects a CET1 ratio of at least 12% in the first quarter. It had aimed for at least 12.5% in the first half of this year. Top executives’ bonuses for last year have been scrapped.Credit Suisse Payout Pause Won’t Halt Archegos Fallout: ReactThe Zurich-based bank was one of several global investment banks to facilitate the leveraged bets of Archegos, and had tried to reach some sort of standstill to figure out how to unwind positions without sparking panic, people familiar with the matter have said. The strategy failed as rivals rushed to cut their losses.“Almost two weeks in, it is still not clear how the bank managed to take a 4.4 billion-franc charge for one client in the prime brokerage business, which we estimate generates less than 1 billion francs per annum in revenues,” JPMorgan’s analysts wrote.Among big banks that dealt with Archegos, only Nomura Holdings Inc. has signaled the potential to also take a multibillion-dollar hit, saying it could lose as much as $2 billion.Credit Suisse’s latest trades came more than a week after several rivals dumped their shares. The bank hit the market with block trades tied to ViacomCBS Inc., Vipshop Holdings Ltd. and Farfetch Ltd., a person with knowledge of the matter said. The stocks traded substantially below where they were last month before Hwang’s family office imploded.In addition to the Archegos writedown, Credit Suisse may need to set aside 2 billion francs over the coming years for litigation tied to Greensill, according to the JPMorgan analysts.Startup lender Greensill Capital had borrowed from the bank and helped manage a group of debt funds that were marketed as among its safest products. Now the funds are frozen and being wound down after Lex Greensill’s firm collapsed amid doubts about its lending practices.Credit Suisse said it will provide an update on the funds in the next few days.(Adds shareholder comment in fifth paragraph.)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.