The Data Crisis Is Unfolding – Are We Ready?

Republished By Plato

Followers: 0

The rapid advancement of technology, including generative AI, IoT, and autonomous vehicles, is revolutionizing industries and enhancing efficiency. At the same time, such advances also generate huge amounts of data to be transmitted and processed to make sense and provide value to consumers and society as a whole. In essence, heavy reliance on seamless data movement and processing have become integral to various aspects of modern life, from transportation logistics to healthcare and climate control. While the benefits are great and many, and include enhanced decision making, personalization, improved healthcare, and efficient resource allocation, there are various types of potential dangers that go hand-in-hand. At a broad level, we could call what we are marching toward as a potential data crisis in the making.

While this potential data crisis has many aspects to it, the most fundamental concern is the ability to continue to transmit and process data at increasingly higher speeds and very low latencies, without any disruption. Alphawave Semi has published a whitepaper on this specific aspect of the data crisis. Such a data crisis could have far-reaching consequences for individuals, society and the global economy. Businesses make market entry decisions based not only on potential opportunities and risk/reward calculations but also on consequential damages claims exposure. But with a heavy reliance on data and a highly interconnected world, it is difficult to isolate oneself or individual applications from this data crisis.

For example, an autonomous vehicle is expected to process 19 terabytes (TB) of data per hour to conduct itself. At a projected 840,000 autonomous vehicles hitting the streets by 2030, this translates to 1.6 million terabytes of data per hour. A disruption of even the slightest degree could have fatal and widespread catastrophic consequences. Another example involves the medical industry which uses digital health records for patient management.

Global Data Sphere for Healthcare Data

For example, as of 2021, 88% of US-based doctors were relying on a rugged data infrastructure to support their usage. Any inability to process large volumes of data could lead to misdiagnosis events with dire consequences.

In essence, the overall global data infrastructure needs to be aggressively updated and kept up, to meet the ever-growing demand for data connectivity, integrity, safety and privacy.

Securing our Data Infrastructure

Generative AI, heralded as a transformative force in various industries, relies heavily on data infrastructure to realize its full potential. While it holds promise in improving efficiency and driving innovation, the associated power consumption and computational demands underscore the need for sustainable practices and energy-efficient solutions. While accommodating the demanding requirements of AI applications, our data infrastructure must continue to accommodate regular workloads like streaming videos and video calls.

Power usage of major tech companies data centers

Whether it’s facilitating seamless data transmission or enhancing interconnectivity within hyperscale data centers, semiconductor innovation takes center stage to meet the growing demands of data-intensive workloads. Legacy technologies with monolithic chip structures are insufficient for addressing the mounting computational pressure. Chiplets and custom silicon solutions emerge as game-changers in maximizing efficiency, reducing power consumption, and minimizing latency within data centers. Companies like Alphawave Semi and other industry leaders are spearheading efforts to leverage these technologies, pushing the boundaries of connectivity and scientific advancements.

As we navigate the complexities of the unfolding data crisis, collaboration and adaptability are key. Stakeholders across industries must come together to address the challenges and opportunities presented by the data-driven era. By investing in sustainable practices, embracing technological advancements, making investments, and fostering an ecosystem of innovation, we can look forward to a resilient, efficient, and interconnected digital future.

Summary

The unfolding data crisis presents both challenges and opportunities for our society. By leveraging connectivity, AI, and semiconductor innovation, we can overcome obstacles, drive progress, and usher in a new era of digital transformation and avert a data crisis.

The Alphawave Semi whitepaper on this topic can be downloaded from here.