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Deep learning super sampling (DLSS) is a line of technology developed by Nvidia for real-time deep learning image enhancement and upscaling (Nvidia, 2022a). More explicitly, the technology offers a higher gaming performance by mitigating the GPU’s (Graphics processing unit) task of rendering whole high-resolution frames. Instead, a neural network anticipates what the frame should look like – lessening GPU utilization and increasing frame rates (Nvidia, 2022b).

At the end of September, the company announced a new generation of graphics cards based on its proprietary Ada Lovelace architecture. The new AD102 chip is manufactured using TSMC’s (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company) N4 production process (4 nm) compared to the previous generations, which used Samsung’s 8 nm architecture (TechPowerUp, 2022). The new process allows a transistor count of more than double the previous generation, prompting the company to advertise its newest flagship GPU as 100% faster (Nvidia, 2022c). While the raw increase in gaming performance seems closer to the 80% mark, most gamers were not impressed, considering the higher prices and power draw of cards (PC Guide, 2022). Nonetheless, the technology behind it seems to be worth its price as Nvidia solidifies its focus on AI developments. 

DLSS 3 appears to be the main selling point for the new generation, promising 450% higher frame rates in certain compatible games (Nvidia, 2022d). The huge difference stems from the new generation optical flow accelerator (OFA), which has significantly improved. Nvidia’s OFA calculates an optical flow field by capturing the course and pace of pixels moving from one frame to the other, enabling the AI to reconstruct 87.5% of the total displayed pixels (Brecher, 2022; Nvidia, 2022d). Comparing it to the previous generations, Nvidia’s Applied Deep Learning Vice President mentions that it is both “faster and higher quality” (Palumbo, 2022). This makes it less likely that DLSS 3 will be compatible with previous-generation cards.

Until now, over 35 games have supported Nvidia’s new super-resolution technology; however, the company announced that many more games would receive full support by the end of the year (Matthews, 2022). It will be interesting to watch AMD’s response to their RDNA 3 GPUs launch in November, as their upscaling technology FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR) seemed to stack up just fine in gaming benchmarks against the previous iteration of DLSS. The technological developments in PC gaming will transform the user experience, building a more immersive environment close to reality.

References:

Brecher, H. (2022). Nvidia DLSS 3.0 erstellt ganze Frames und 87,5% aller Pixel per KI für eine deutlich bessere Gaming-Leistung. Notebookcheck. https://www.notebookcheck.com/Nvidia-DLSS-3-0-erstellt-ganze-Frames-und-87-5-aller-Pixel-per-KI-fuer-eine-deutlich-bessere-Gaming-Leistung.654245.0.html

Gapo, B. (2022). AMD RDNA 3 Release Date, Price, And Specs. GPU Mag. https://www.gpumag.com/amd-rdna-3/

Matthews, D. (2022). Here are all of the games that will support Nvidia DLSS 3. Digital Trends. https://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/here-are-all-of-the-games-that-will-support-nvidia-dlss-3/

Nvidia. (2022a). Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS) Technology. NVIDIA.

https://www.nvidia.com/nl-nl/geforce/technologies/dlss/

Nvidia. (2022b). Artificial Neural Network. NVIDIA Developer. https://developer.nvidia.com/discover/artificial-neural-network

Nvidia. (2022c). NVIDIA Ada Lovelace Architecture. NVIDIA.

https://www.nvidia.com/nl-nl/geforce/ada-lovelace-architecture/

Nvidia. (2022d). Introducing NVIDIA DLSS 3. NVIDIA.

https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/geforce/news/dlss3-ai-powered-neural-graphics-innovations/

Palumbo, A. (2022). NVIDIA Engineer Says DLSS 3 on Older RTX GPUs Could Theoretically Happen, Teases RTX I/O News. Wccftech. https://wccftech.com/nvidia-engineer-says-dlss-3-on-older-rtx-gpus-could-theoretically-happen-teases-rtx-i-o-news/

PC Guide. (2022). RTX 4090 vs RTX 3090: How Ada stacks up to Ampere. https://www.pcguide.com/gpu/rtx-4090-vs-3090/

TechPowerUp. (2022, October 14). NVIDIA AD102 GPU Specs. TechPowerUp. https://www.techpowerup.com/gpu-specs/nvidia-ad102.g1005

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In the near future, we will likely receive almost all of our deliverable orders by air mobility, as companies are looking at the potential of leveraging drones to transport items of different shapes and sizes. The latest technological developments allow companies to seek full automation of drone delivery services, as operational expenses would be highly reduced compared to the traditional delivery business model. Furthermore, fully automation could result in a high-rate delivery potential, with specific orders being fulfilled in under 15 minutes (Amazon Staff, 2022).

Drones used to be most often associated with the military (Lutkevich, 2022). However, the emergence of technologies has led to drones being equipped with new features and use cases for civilian roles – both for leisure and work purposes. For instance, AI enables camera drones to follow certain objects for videography and LiDAR drones are used to map archaeological landscapes.

While in the past three years, 660,000 drone deliveries were performed, in 2022, approximately 2000 drone deliveries were performed daily (McKinsey, 2022). The goods transported range from blood transfusions to food. 

Will drones become commonplace? 

McKinsey (2022) has identified three main factors affecting the development of the drone delivery sectors: regulation, public acceptance, and costs. First, the government-imposed regulations (e.g., airspace) will widely affect the adoption rate of this technology as unaccommodating circumstances might push back the deployment on a large scale. Second, drone deliveries must acquire consumers’ trust by demonstrating the accuracy and reliability of the technology in practice. Third, the costs of drone deliveries are essential for its adoption. As drone technologies directly compete with autonomous cars and ground robots, it is critical that the technology quickly matures to benefit from economies of scope and scale (e.g., decreasing the costs).   

Tech giants such as Google and Amazon have already invested in drone technologies through their Wing and Prime Air subsidiaries. In the past, next-day deliveries have changed how we perceive delivery services – increasing the customers’ requirements. While the impact of drone mobility remains to be seen, it is evident that it will drastically change the current status quo.

References:

Amazon Staff (2022). Amazon Prime Air prepares for drone deliveries. About Amazon. Available at: https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/transportation/amazon-prime-air-prepares-for-drone-deliveries.

Lutkevich, B. (2021). What is a Drone? – Definition from WhatIs.com. IoT Agenda. Available at: https://www.techtarget.com/iotagenda/definition/drone.

McKinsey (2022). Drone delivery: More lift than you think. McKinsey & Company. Available at: https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/aerospace-and-defense/our-insights/future-air-mobility-blog/drone-delivery-more-lift-than-you-think.