The SpiNNaker2 chip: a many-core platform for flexible and scalable brain-inspired computing
Research output: Contribution to journal › Research article › Contributed › peer-review
Contributors
Abstract
In deep learning, efficiency gets more and more important to compensate for the ongoing growth in model sizes and applications. Neuromorphic hardware has long been advocated as an upcoming alternative to deep networks, taking inspiration from the brain for achieving unprecedented energy efficiency. However, demonstrations of these gains only recently began to grow in complexity and real-world applicability. With SpiNNaker2, we present a chip that bridges the gap between deep networks and neuromorphic computing and allows for flexible exploration of computing approaches that combine both worlds. It features 152 processing elements equipped with an ARM M4F processor and dedicated accelerators, an extended SpiNNaker routing fabric for scalable event-based communication and a range of external interfaces for system integration, including Gbit Ethernet and an LPDDR4 memory interface. We demonstrate performance and efficiency of the SpiNNaker2 chip for neuromorphic and deep network workloads, as well as novel event-based computing approaches. For deep network workloads, the chip achieves up to 4.5 TOPS in high performance mode and up to 2.7 TOPS/W efficiency in high efficiency mode for INT8 workloads. The chip supports spiking neural networks with >150 000 neurons and > 1.8 billion synaptic events/s when simulated with a 1 ms time step. Its low baseline power of less than 250 mW allows for efficiency even under varying workload conditions, allowing to explore sparse and event-based modes of computation. All this demonstrates the chip’s capabilities as a universal hardware platform for scalable brain-inspired computing and its combinations with mainstream deep network approaches.
Details
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 465-478 |
| Number of pages | 14 |
| Journal | IEEE Open Journal of Circuits and Systems |
| Volume | 7 |
| Early online date | 20 Jul 2026 |
| Publication status | Published - 2026 |
| Peer-reviewed | Yes |
External IDs
| ORCID | /0000-0002-6286-5064/work/222762112 |
|---|---|
| ORCID | /0000-0001-8525-8702/work/222762138 |
Keywords
Sustainable Development Goals
ASJC Scopus subject areas
Keywords
- AI accelerators, Neuromorphics, application specific integrated circuits, artificial neural networks, computer architecture, deep learning, energy efficiency, neural network hardware, spiking neural networks, system-on-chip