LEAD STORY

What is it ? – Also known as Tiny ML ( machine learning ), the technology is a big focus for AI researchers . The aim is to reduce the size of algorithms , especially those using large quantities of data and computational power .

Why do we need it ? – Training sophisticated AI uses huge amounts of energy , leaving a big carbon footprint . As adoption grows , it ’ s clear it needs to be less polluting . Then there ’ s the need to run inference models at the edge for use cases like robotics , automated video security and anomaly detection in manufacturing .

What is happening in the field ? – As well as academics , tech giants such as Google , IBM , Amazon and Apple are undertaking research around it . There have been commercial moves by cloud providers , for example AWS ’ Sagemaker Neo . There are also collaborations between big tech and academia .

When will it become commonplace ? – It ’ s very much an emerging area and is mainly research driven , with few companies leveraging Tiny AI in production .

� ZOOM Use of the software jumped 30-fold in April , as the coronavirus pandemic forced millions to work , learn and socialise remotely . At its peak , the firm counted more than 300 million daily participants and paying customers have more than tripled .

� COCKROACH LABS Known for CockroachDB , a cloudnative , distributed SQL database providing “ next-level consistency , ultra-resilience , data locality and scale to modern cloud applications .” Its revenue more than doubled in 2020 . The startup expects similar growth levels this year and to double its workforce from 200-400 by the end of the year .

� FASTLY A bug in the edge cloud platform ’ s code caused an internet blackout for some of the world ’ s biggest websites and took out 85 % of the company ’ s network .

� BITCOIN Its value plunged 30 % to nearly $ 30,000 in May and was down more than 50 % since its record high of $ 64,829 in mid- April . Overall , more than $ 250 billion evaporated from the bitcoin market .

technologymagazine . com 15