Baidu Adopts Xilinx to Accelerate Machine Learning Applications in the Data Center

FPGA-based platform supports the rapid growth of intelligent applications in the cloud

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Oct. 17, 2016 -- Xilinx, Inc. (NASDAQ: XLNX) today announced that Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU), the leading Chinese language Internet search provider, is utilizing Xilinx^® FPGAs to accelerate machine learning applications in their data centers in China. The two companies are collaborating to further expand volume deployment of FPGA-based accelerated platforms. As rapid growth of emerging applications begins to drive up computational workloads, data centers are turning to application accelerators to keep up with the demands for greater throughput at low latency while retaining practical power levels.

Xilinx FPGAs deliver the power efficiency that makes accelerators practical to deploy throughout the data center and can deliver a 10-20X performance/watt improvement. Baidu-optimized FPGA platforms are tuned for machine learning applications such as image and speech recognition. The platforms will also be leveraged in Baidu's initiative to develop commercially viable autonomous cars. When deployed in Baidu data centers, a powerful centralized pool of accelerators can be rapidly configured for the most demanding workloads based on user demand.

"Acceleration is essential to keep up with the rapidly increasing data center workloads that support our growth," said Yang Liu, Executive Director at Baidu.

"Xilinx FPGAs are assisting greatly with this critical task and can provide significant value in the design of autonomous vehicles," added Junwei Bao, Director in Baidu's Autonomous Driving Unit.

"The momentum for FPGA-based acceleration continues as shown by this significant implementation with Baidu," said Victor Peng, Executive Vice President and GM of the Programmable Products Group at Xilinx. "We celebrate Baidu's innovation, expertise and creativity in bringing advanced applications to market."

About Xilinx
Xilinx is the leading provider of All Programmable FPGAs, SoCs, MPSoCs, and 3D ICs. Xilinx uniquely enables applications that are both software defined and hardware optimized – powering industry advancements in Cloud Computing, Embedded Vision, Industrial IoT, and 5G Wireless. For more information, visit www.xilinx.com.