Founded in 2002, Intel Labs is a global research organization that creates innovations for Intel Corporation and the industry at large. We are committed to working with our industry partners to design bold new technologies that solve the most significant computing challenges of the future.
Intel Labs has campuses worldwide and a team of visionaries with more than 700 researchers from approximately 30 technical disciplines. These engineers, computer scientists, physicists, neuroscientists, and anthropologists fuel diversity and ensure a holistic understanding of technology’s impact on society and their ethical implications.
With more than 2,500 patents in the past five years alone and more than 200 technology transfers, Intel Labs has pioneered game-changing technologies such as many-core processors, quantum computing, neuromorphic computing, and silicon photonics. In addition, it has established 100 major standards, including PCI Express, Thunderbolt, USB-C, and 5G enabling innovation at scale.
Other notable inventions include:
- Creating the foundation for the industry’s only silicon photonics solution for next-generation data centers
- Designing the industry’s first hardware-assisted virtualization of Intel CPUs and platforms
- Collaborating with the Broad Institute to help scientists accelerate genomic research Rebuilding the assistive computer system that enabled Stephen Hawking to interact with the world.
The Mission of Intel Labs
Seek. Solve. Scale.
That’s the rallying cry for Rich Uhlig, Director of Intel Labs and Senior Fellow at Intel. Watch this segment of “Brains Behind the Brains” and learn about Intel’s core mission to seek and solve the biggest challenges of our time, innovate with a purpose, and scale solutions for the whole industry.
Expansive Research Scope
Intel Labs focuses on solving the most complex data challenges of the future to fully unleash its potential. Intel Labs’ research scope spans every layer of the technology stack, from data to novel sensing technologies to advance memory, security, and storage. Our work also explores connectivity within and between chips and between systems, and the future of software.
Core research areas include:
- Next Wave of AI
Taking AI to the next level includes developing advanced algorithms and knowledge systems that enable more humanistic Cognitive AI. Emerging technologies such as neuromorphic computing, which utilizes new hardware innovations like Loihi 2, help compute systems understand, reason, and act. Another example is Intel’s Anticipatory Computing Lab team’s Assistive Context-Aware Toolkit, which allows people with severe disabilities to communicate through keyboard simulation, word prediction, and speech synthesis.
- Trust, Security, and Privacy
Developing confidential computing technologies enables software and machine-learning systems to protect critical data. Intel Labs is committed to finding ways to protect computer hardware from allowing the secure exchange of confidential data. One example is Nasdaq leveraging crypto acceleration in Intel’s third-generation Intel® Xeon® scalable platform to significantly speed up computation for its homomorphic encryption applications.
Another example is Leidos and Fortanix using Intel® Software Guard Extension (Intel® SGX) to help streamline and accelerate clinical drug trials. In addition, Intel Labs’ University Research & Collaboration Office (URC) has established the Intel® Crypto Frontiers Research Center. The collaborative multi-university center will bring together world-renowned cryptographers to create future cryptography technologies.
- Efficient Design and Programming
Intel Labs draws on the latest AI methods to empower developers to design and program increasingly complex hardware and software. The machine programming research team aims to simplify software development by developing systems like ControlFlag that automatically detects performance and correctness bugs.
- Novel Sensing Technology
Designing more effective sensing systems using visual and radio technologies is at the heart of Intel Labs’ sensing research. One area of focus is combining data from many sensors to improve perception and help technology better understand our world and human needs.
- Next-gen Connectivity, 5G, and Beyond
Intel Labs is building new ways to move data, which traditionally spans wired, wireless, and optical technologies through technologies like integrated photonics. The research includes connecting people and machines worldwide, ranging from chip-level interconnects to intelligent networks for data centers.
To accelerate research in next-generation wireless systems, Intel Labs formed a partnership with a National Science Foundation (NSF)-led, multi-sector partnership to form RINGS – the Resilient and Intelligent Next-Generation Systems program. Intel Labs is also researching multi-access traffic management at the Edge, electromagnetic and radio frequency interreference, and Wireless Time-Sensitive Networking (WTSN).
- Advance Memory and Storage
Intel Labs addresses the current and future explosion of data by advancing memory and storage systems to bring compute closer to data. The unique memory capabilities of Intel® Optane technology provide the basis for discovering new advances in data storage and memory to break data barriers.
- New Compute Models
Intel Labs is pioneering new computing methods to enable tomorrow's most advanced technologies, including quantum and neuromorphic computing. These revolutionary technologies are expected to provide significantly greater compute performance than traditional systems. Innovations like Horse Ridge II, Intel’s second-generation cryogenic quantum control chip, and the Cryoprober enable greater scalability and high-volume testing, helping to accelerate quantum practicality.
- Emerging Workloads
Intel Labs is studying the needs of future applications from advanced visualization and AI to massive scientific and medical simulations. By understanding how to build more effective computing systems such as quantum computing, researchers are discovering novel approaches to meet these workload needs.
- Future of Software
Advancing the next era of more disaggregated and granular software systems is a major challenge that requires in-depth understanding. Intel Labs is designing systems to operate across the massive scale of future edge-to-cloud systems. Intel Labs has dedicated research efforts for developing cloud software and future architecture for the software stack. This includes research on very large data bases (VLDB) ranging from benchmarking anomaly detection algorithms and learned index structures to using visual data management systems (VDMS) for indexing and search, and machine learning (ML).
For further information on the latest advanced research initiatives that will shape the future of computing over the next decade and beyond, visit: Intel Labs Day 2020.