On December 14, during the OPPO Future Technology Conference 2021, OPPO officially released the first image-specific NPU chip, Mariana MariSilicon X (hereinafter referred to as "Mariana X"). This is the opening work of OPPO's image totem in the next ten years, and it is also OPPO's first self-developed chip, which means that another domestic mobile phone company has joined the camp of self-developed chips.
According to the official introduction, Mariana X is a 6nm image dedicated NPU chip, with a computing power of 18 TOPS, and the operating speed of the AI algorithm is also industry-leading. At the same time, it also integrates and evolves the image processing capabilities under the trend of video streaming, pushing computed images to a new height of 4K+20bit RAW+AI+Ultra HDR.
It is different from the ISP (Image Processing Unit) chip integrated in the soC of the mobile phone, exists independently of the SoC, and together with it constitutes the left and right brains of the core operation of the mobile phone, realizing the true "one machine and two cores".
Why are mobile phone manufacturers willing to invest a lot of money to make an image chip? The answer given by Chen Mingyong, the founder of OPPO, is that in the era of mutual integration of all things, key problems must be solved through key technologies. A technology company, if there is no underlying core technology, there can be no future; and without the underlying core technology of high-end products, it is a castle in the air.
Solve key problems with key technologies
Image capabilities have become a must for mobile phone manufacturers. The reason behind this is not difficult to understand, taking pictures, taking pictures, taking videos is one of the most frequently used functions of today's smartphone users, and its performance largely determines the user's evaluation of a mobile phone. Therefore, while mobile phone manufacturers compete with overseas optical manufacturers, they pursue breakthrough pixel ceilings, in short, they must establish their own competitiveness in the field of imaging.
Users always have a high demand for images, but due to the size limitations of mobile phones, it is always difficult to compare with the imaging quality of professional equipment. For a long time, mobile phone manufacturers have been competing with the number of mobile phone lenses and the level of pixels, but from the user's point of view, the experience has not changed fundamentally.
In order to break through the hardware limitations of mobile phones, the best way to do this is to improve the ability to calculate images.
The so-called computational imaging is to improve the traditional mobile phone from the imaging mechanism, and organically combine the hardware design with the software computing power to make up for the gap between the mobile phone and the professional camera, and achieve the effect of close to the SLR. Nowadays, mainstream mobile phone manufacturers are basically working on computing images."
Competing in computing images, in essence, is still the core of the underlying hardware technology and the differentiated competition of major chip manufacturers. Since the beginning of this year, a number of domestic manufacturers have launched self-developed ISP chips designed for mobile phone images. However, in OPPO's view, the current imaging ISP generally has the problem of insufficient computing power, which is also the core problem facing the current mobile phone imaging.
What is an ISP? Simply put, it is the key to determining the final imaging effect of the mobile phone shooting, how much resolution video the phone can record, how high-pixel sensors it supports, and whether it supports HDR video. Most mobile phone manufacturers have integrated it into the SoC, and some manufacturers have made ISP chips that are independent of the motherboard, but in essence, they have not yet broken through the limits of computing power.
Mariana X is an image-specific NPU (neural network processor) chip, which is different from isps, mainly power AI operations, independent of SoC and exists, can be with SoC to form the left and right brain of mobile phone core operations, obviously more difficult to develop.
Jiang Bo, senior director of OPPO products, said in an interview that the current practice of integrating ISPs on general chips cannot meet the needs of AI for computing images in computing power and energy efficiency, which requires self-developed special NPU to maximize the problem of computing power and energy efficiency, which is also the reason why OPPO's first chip chose image NPU. He believes that this is the mainstream direction of future image development.
It may be difficult for the average consumer to understand the difference in the number of hash rates. If these computing power is converted into user experience, OPPO can simultaneously achieve 4K+20bit RAW+AI+Ultra HDR specification night scene video, which has reached the new limit of the current mobile phone image computing power, truly improving the user experience, rather than staying in the invalid competition of pixels and mobile phone lenses.
Jiang Bo mentioned that compared with traditional chip manufacturers, the biggest advantage of OPPO making chips is that it can decide the demand for hardware from the user's perspective, rather than simply making up its mind about what specifications to do. For example, when the mariana X was first developed, the team considered more about the impact of increasing the chip on the battery capacity and other indicators, and then came to the chip to raise the demand, so as to be really close to the user experience.
OPPO product senior director Jiang Bo high-end brand can not do without core technology
OPPO's self-developed chip is not only a consideration from the perspective of users, but also the only way for this brand to go to high-end. Although domestic mobile phones are emphasizing high-end, from the sales of high-end mobile phones, manufacturers like Apple and Samsung are still leading.
For a long time, domestic brands have been questioned that there is no underlying core technology, especially chips, which is the key to determining the differentiated competition of smart phones. Only by mastering the underlying core technology can we have the courage to shout out the slogan of high-end brands. The launch of Mariana X means that OPPO has taken the most critical and practical step towards becoming a high-end brand.
In fact, it is not easy to create such a chip, and the process is a problem in the first place. At the beginning of the design chip, OPPO had considered the 12nm solution, and there were many basic IPs available, which could greatly shorten the research and development cycle. But in the end, it was found that in order to achieve the optimal level of performance and power consumption, only 6nm was feasible.
However, the process ecology of the 6nm process is not developed, and it lacks existing IP, which means high investment, high risk, high difficulty and high uncertainty for manufacturers who are making chips for the first time like OPPO.
Before OPPO, the only manufacturers in the country that can design and mass-produce commercial 6nm chips are Huawei HiSilicon, Ali and MediaTek, and the 6nm NPU does not have any designs on the market. All the core IP required in the chip design process, OPPO must be self-developed.
This means that OPPO not only has to face a longer research and development cycle, but also bears huge costs. This is an obvious huge investment: 6nm and more advanced processes use EUV lithography technology, and the cost reaches tens of millions of dollars, which is 2-3 times higher than 12nm. In the tape-out link after the design of the chip, the cost of a test is as high as 100 million.
What's more, before the official tape-out experiment, no one knew whether it would be successful or not, and if it failed, it needed to be torn down and restarted.
"The investment in the self-developed chip is very large, but whether it is 6nm, 3nm or 12nm, if this chip can help us solve the pain points and value points on the user side, it is worth investing," Jiang Bo said.
Traditional chip manufacturers do chips more to consider the balance between the cost and demand of terminal manufacturers, but OPPO chips are "additive" thinking, thinking from the user's point of view, and using the "saturation" stacking method to do chips. For example, OPPO also specially integrated independent bandwidth for Mariana X, including exascale AI dedicated bandwidth and gigabit image bandwidth, to provide further protection for high computing power, which is also a luxury practice in the chip industry. Reflected in the user, it is a higher running speed and a smoother operating experience.
Chip development is an extremely difficult process, but the success of the Mariana X means that OPPO has really got the ticket to the high-end process. It is understood that Mariana X is foundry by TSMC 6nm process, with the advancement of OPPO chip strategy, the future OPPO is expected to TSMC strategic customer list, become one of the mobile phone manufacturers with the right to speak in the chip industry chain.
Return to the original intention, "smile forward"
OPPO's emphasis on underlying technologies is a precursor.
In 2020, OPPO formulated a 3+N+X technology transition strategy. Among them, "3" is the "basic skill" of the whole set of strategies, representing the three basic technologies of hardware, software and services; "N" is a variety of technology applications that are biased towards user scenarios such as AI, security, and IoT; "X" refers to differentiated and exclusive technologies such as chips and VOOC flash charging, which determine the core competitiveness of OPPO.
Mariana X is an incision in the "3+N+X" strategy, which means that OPPO's competitiveness has taken a new step. Through the innovation of the underlying technology, OPPO can gradually reduce its dependence on traditional chip manufacturers and further coordinate hardware, software and services, thereby improving the consistency and consistency of user experience.
This action is familiar. In 2014, in the era of mobile phone charging still staying in the "5V1A", OPPO took the lead in the industry to launch the self-developed VOOC series flash charging technology, under the premise of ensuring safety, the speed of mobile phone charging increased by more than 4 times, directly changing the pattern of mobile phone charging. Today, OPPO has launched a dedicated NPU chip for imaging in the industry for the first time, which to some extent fills the gap in the computing power of mobile phone images.
Doing revolutionary innovation is a difficult task in any era. Oppo's self-developed chip is called "Mariana", and it is also the deepest sea OPPO in the world to describe the most difficult thing to make a "top chip". Since its inception, OPPO has almost "spared no investment" in order to come up with technologies that can truly fundamentally change the user experience.
In OPPO's view, whether it is fast charging technology or self-developed chips that are difficult to "Mariana", the starting point is the same - "for people". OPPO believes that this is the essence and direction of the development of science and technology. Therefore, as a technology company, OPPO's pursuit is to solve the key problems of users through key technologies, increase the happiness of users, and promote social progress.
At the same time as the release of Mariana X, OPPO also unveiled its latest brand proposition - smile forward. In the second half of the industry competition and the deep water area of research and development, OPPO hopes to be confident and calm, steady and steady, and continue to move forward. "Mariana X, it's just a small step for us, our footsteps don't stop. We will continue to invest resources and use a team of thousands of people to engage in self-developed chips in a down-to-earth manner. No matter how many challenges lie ahead, we will persevere and hold fast to the green mountains and not relax! Chen Mingyong said at the conference.
From image NPUs to higher-order chips, OPPO's investment continues. This is the answer sheet that OPPO handed over to the mobile phone inner volume era. The best way to combat the industry's internal volume is not to go with the flow, let alone surrender and admit defeat, but to return to the original intention and effectively solve the needs of users. As long as you are on the right path, time will give the best answer.
OPPO's next-generation flagship, oppo Find X series, will debut with Mariana MariSilicon X in the first quarter of 2022. The technical performance of this chip is left to the user to test.