INESC TEC joins project to address the challenges of efficient computing

The UNIFY project, launched this month, aims to develop compiler technology within the scope of new computing architectures – which can be programmed from conventional, widely used programming languages. INESC TEC is one of the partners of this project that promises to create a unified response to the technological limitations of general-purpose processors (GPPs). 

While the increasing amount of data and the advancement in algorithm design have demonstrated the performance and efficiency limitations of the so-called general-purpose processors, they’ve also paved the way for the development of new specialised architectures capable of addressing current computing efficiency and performance needs.  

“The increasing need for efficient computing, both in terms of time and energy consumption, requires the diversification of computing techniques. That is, technological limitations of conventional processors require specialised processors for certain domains or applications”, said Nuno Paulino, researcher at INESC TEC.  

However, the design of novel specialised architectures for said purposes involves the creation of new languages, which may pose challenges in their use. “The benefits of creating new architectures will be reduced, if we’re unable to showcase them through a model and a programming language that allow their use. However, the creation of new languages is not a trivial exercise; they would face significant adoption barriers concerning established languages”, explained the researcher. 

In this sense, the UNIFY project aims to develop a compiler technology that allows the use of new architectures via conventional, widely used programming languages. In particular, and within the scope of this project, INESC TEC focuses on developing an intermediate language, which allows programming different architectures based on the so-called conventional languages. This will allow users to benefit from performance advantages of new or customised architectures, avoiding the effort dedicated to learning new methodologies and languages. 

The project’s advantages will materialise in emerging domains like edge computing, Artificial Intelligence, and machine learning applications or 5G/6G telecommunications, which require fast response time and low power consumption.  

With an investment of €250K, the project is funded by the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) and will last for 36 months. UNIFY is led by INESC-ID, with the Centre for Telecommunications and Multimedia (CTM) and the Centre for Human-Centered Computing and Information Science of INESC TEC and the Instituto de Telecomunicações (IT), in Coimbra,  as partners. 

The researcher mentioned in this news piece is associated with INESC TEC.