# Lincoln laboratory publishes survey of AI accelerators

Digest AI · Research · published 2026-10-06T20:55:00Z

Canonical: https://digestai.news/story/lincoln-laboratory-publishes-survey-of-ai-accelerators

## Summary

The Lincoln Laboratory Supercomputing Center (LLSC) has been running the Lincoln AI Computing Survey (LAICS) since 2018. The survey now spans six papers, covering more than 120 AI accelerators, from CPUs and GPUs to ASICs, FPGAs and data‑flow chips. The team, led by Albert Reuther, compares each device’s peak performance and peak power, drawing data from public sources.

LAICS uses peak performance and power as its main metrics, then sorts devices by form factor—chip, card or system. The survey also explores how architectural choices, such as adding cores or parallel performance, affect performance. In the latest paper, the team noted that smaller, denser transistor designs and lower numerical precision drive performance gains. Reuther reports that each year five to ten new startups launch accelerators, and six have announced their first products in recent months.

The survey informs LLSC’s procurement decisions, helping the laboratory choose GPUs for future systems and advising government sponsors on acquisition choices. Reuther says the data help sponsors and mission programs understand the AI accelerator landscape and make better research and acquisition decisions. The full set of papers and datasets is available online.

## Key points

- LAICS surveyed 57 accelerators in its first paper, 120+ in the latest.
- Survey compares peak performance and power across CPUs, GPUs, ASICs, FPGAs, data‑flow accelerators.
- Six new startups announced AI accelerators in recent months.

## Why it matters

The survey provides a benchmark for AI hardware performance, guiding procurement and research decisions for government labs and industry. It highlights emerging startups and architectural trends that shape future AI workloads.

## Sources

1. [Supercomputing researchers document evolution of AI hardware](https://news.mit.edu/2026/supercomputing-researchers-document-evolution-ai-hardware-1006) (MIT News on AI, 2026-10-06, primary source)

## Cite

Digest AI, "Lincoln laboratory publishes survey of AI accelerators", 6 October 2026, https://digestai.news/story/lincoln-laboratory-publishes-survey-of-ai-accelerators

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