Intel officially launches its pay-as-you-go CPU platform
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Intel has officially launched its pay-as-you-go CPU platform, where system administrators will pay to activate select accelerators.
The new Intel On Demand software-defined silicon (SDSi) service is expected to reduce the amount of hardware shipped from the company while allowing customers to virtually upgrade their machines.
The program will likely use the company’s fourth-generation Xeon Scalable Sapphire Rapids processors, which are expected to finally launch in early 2023 after several delays.
Intel on demand
Intel says the program will allow companies to reduce their investment in chips that deliver performance they wouldn’t normally need, and that Intel will activate certain features on an as-needed basis, pay-as-you-go.
Tom’s hardware (opens in new tab) reports that Intel intends to make Software Guard Extensions, Dynamic Load Balancer (DLB), Intel Data Streaming Accelerator (DSA), Intel In-Memory Analytics Accelerator (IAA), Intel In-Memory Analytics Accelerator, and Intel QuickAssist Technology (QAT) all available at application under this scheme.
With no official announcement on the matter, pricing for Intel On Demand has yet to be announced. Instead, the company has been Intel On Demand page (opens in new tab) where it lists Lenovo as the supplier of its consumption and activation models, while companies like HPE and Supermicro instead focus on just one model type.
According to The register (opens in new tab)the activation model uses a one-time fee to unlock additional features, while the consumption model promises to “dynamically match” infrastructure and demand.
All this in a bid to boost sales as the company forecasts a turbulent few years of austerity, starting with a $3 billion cost cut in 2023.