The Raspberry Pi 5, known for its popularity among tech hobbyists and industrial users, is now stepping into the realm of artificial intelligence. Raspberry Pi Ltd. has launched the AI Kit, a $70 extension kit designed to transform the Raspberry Pi 5 into a powerful AI computing device. This kit includes a neural network inference accelerator, providing local inferencing capabilities.
A Powerful Partnership
In developing this AI Kit, Raspberry Pi has partnered with Hailo Technologies Ltd., a startup specializing in AI chips designed for edge devices. Hailo recently raised $120 million and aims to compete with industry giants like Nvidia. Their Hailo-8L AI accelerator module, now part of the Raspberry Pi AI Kit, offers up to 13 tera-operations per second (TOPS) of inferencing performance. While this might not rival high-end GPUs, it provides a cost-effective and energy-efficient solution suitable for the Raspberry Pi’s 27W power supply.
Technical Specifications
The AI Kit utilizes Raspberry Pi’s HAT+ extension card, an expansion card system that fits atop the regular Raspberry Pi. This card includes an M.2 slot connected via a single-lane PCIe 3.0 interface, supporting various PC components. The Hailo-8L module easily fits into this slot, enhancing the Raspberry Pi 5 with advanced AI processing capabilities.
Software Integration
The latest Raspberry Pi OS release automatically detects the Hailo module, making the neural processing unit available to the OS and compatible applications. Raspberry Pi has also updated its camera software suite to leverage the AI capabilities for tasks such as object detection, semantic segmentation, instance segmentation, pose estimation, and facial landmarking.
Use Cases and Community Impact
The collaboration between Raspberry Pi and Hailo aims to empower both professional and enthusiast developers to elevate their projects in home automation, security, robotics, and beyond. The AI Kit provides hardware and software tools to build and deploy AI projects, making it easier for users to implement applications like object recognition and voice processing.
Hailo’s CEO, Eben Upton, highlighted the significance of this partnership: “Our collaboration with Hailo enables Raspberry Pi’s industrial customers to integrate AI into high-performance solutions that are extremely cost-effective and power-efficient. For enthusiasts, the AI Kit provides an accessible way to enhance their creative projects with AI.”
Future Prospects
This partnership marks a significant milestone for Hailo, as it extends the reach of its AI accelerators to a broader audience. Hailo is also launching an online developer community to support creators and developers with tutorials, FAQs, and other resources, fostering innovation and exploration.
As Raspberry Pi continues to evolve, this AI extension kit represents a tool for the community to explore new use cases and applications. The combination of Raspberry Pi’s affordability and Hailo’s advanced AI technology promises to open up new possibilities for AI-driven projects and solutions.