IEEE Spectrum

IEEE Spectrum A study of a database of 34 of the biggest Bitcoin mines in the U.S. by Harvard University researchers found they consumed 32.3 terawatt-hours of electricity from August 2022 to July 2023, 33% more than consumed by all of Los Angeles over the same period. The researchers discovered four key hotspot pockets of […]

IEEE Spectrum The U.S. chip workforce is forecast to grow 33% to 460,000 jobs by 2030, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association, but 67,000 of those jobs may be difficult to fill due to a lack of qualified candidates. In mid-April, job platform Indeed listed more than 900 entry-level semiconductor roles, including more than 100 […]

IEEE Spectrum Intel researchers leveraged reinforcement learning to identify more silent data errors in its Xeon processors before they are installed in datacenters. The technique builds on the Eigen tests currently are used to detect such errors. Researchers focused the tests on the area of the chip that uses fuse-multiply-add (FMA) instructions to perform matrix […]

IEEE Spectrum IEEE Spectrum’s annual ranking of U.S. patenting powerhouses in 2024 features mostly Big Tech companies in the top 10. Based on 1790 Analytics’ Pipeline Power metric, Amazon has the most patent power despite ranking 20th for the number of patents, mainly because its patents are cited more frequently by other patents. Samsung was […]

IEEE Spectrum Researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology and several South Korean universities developed a wireless electrode, less than a millimeter wide, that can be placed on the scalp in between hair follicles. Integrated with a brain-computer interface, the sensor allowed users to control a video call on an augmented reality headset while walking […]

IEEE Spectrum There is strong demand for electrical engineers with expertise in power systems, energy efficiency, and renewable energy amid an increase in datacenter construction. Amazon, Meta, and Google reportedly are paying annual salaries up to $281,000 for electrical design, research and development, and mechatronics engineers, while Oracle is looking to fill more than a […]

IEEE Spectrum Layoffs.fyi reported a slowdown in the pace of global tech sector layoffs last year, when more than 150,000 jobs were cut at hundreds of companies. Now the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is forecasting a 9% increase in U.S. employment for electrical engineers from 2023 to 2033, versus a 4% gain among […]

IEEE Spectrum Nonprofit Software Heritage has launched the CodeCommons project with the goal of creating the biggest repository of ethically sourced code for training AI models. CodeCommons will be focused on developing a unified data platform that gives researchers access to pre-cleaned code collections featuring license information, links to related research papers, and other metadata. […]

In a news conference on Tuesday, President Trump announced the Stargate Project, which he called “the largest AI infrastructure project, by far, in history.” With the CEOs of OpenAI, Oracle, and Softbank at his side, Trump said that these companies and other private sector partners will invest up to US $500 billion in building data centers […]