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| Intel CEO Brian Krzanich unveils the Quark processor family at the Intel Developer Forum San Francisco recently |
Interl has just unveiled a family of ultra small chips called “Quark”. It is Intel’s smallest silicon yet and
it’s one-fifth the size of the company’s existing Atom cores, and uses one-tenth the power.
“Quark” was introduced by Intel’s CEO Bryan Krzanich at the 2013 Intel Developer Forum (IDF) in San Francisco. He said that the Quark chips will fit in a variety of small devices, and will use “lower power than anyone thought Intel silicon could ever go into.”
He explained that the Quark will have as its focus areas of computing where traditional processors are ill-suited, including Internet of Things (IoT) sensor networks, wearable computing systems and even in-body medical devices. To prove his company’s focus, Krzanich even demonstrated a wearable computing device in the form of a bracelet – which, he claimed, will turn into a reference design in due course.
According to Intel’s President Renee James, “It’s the smallest thing we’ve ever built.” “It’s very much the next frontier; it takes us down to a level we haven’t been at before.”
Krzanich said Quark will come in multiple variants, and be customizable for a variety of uses, including personal medical devices.
“Our strategy is actually very simple,” Krzanich explained earlier in the keynote. “Our plan is to lead in every segment of computing.” That includes servers, laptops, tablets, and phones, but also other devices yet to be designed.
