The publisher will offer in the coming weeks an ARM development kit designed for the development of applications related to AI.
Microsoft always places great hopes in the ARM architecture and proves it again today with this Project Volterra.
A compact computer for developers
This machine, presented by Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft in person, at the Microsoft Build conference, is not a consumer computer, but a development kit reserved for professionals.
The machine, very compact, was only shown briefly, but we can see that the design of the device does not differ from the aesthetic codes deployed on the Surface range, with very straight and sober lines. Microsoft explains precisely that this format was favored in order to be able to stack the computers on top of each other, according to the power needs of the users. The shell is made from recycled plastic recovered from the oceans, in the same way as some of the group’s accessories.
For connectivity, there are also two USB-C ports on the side, as well as three USB ports on the back, alongside a Display port and an Ethernet port.
Native apps to develop AI and cloud computing software more efficiently
Microsoft worked with Qualcomm and Project Volterra integrates a Snapdragon 8CX Gen 3 chip, which also includes an NPU (Neural Processing Unit) for calculations and operations related to artificial intelligence, the “ best of its kind according to the American group.
For the occasion, Microsoft also announced the availability on this machine of Visual Studio 2022, Visual C++, Modern .NET 6 and Java, Classic .NET Framework or Windows Terminal in native versions for the 64-bit architecture. These will prevent Windows 11 from having to go through an emulation solution, which is performance-intensive.
Project Volterra is therefore a machine designed for the development of applications related to AI and Cloud computing, but also a new showcase to encourage developers to adapt their software to this new architecture which should coexist with x86 for several years.
All that remains now is for Microsoft to announce a price and an availability date. The publisher has confirmed that it will be released this year.
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Source : Ars-Technica
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