Hammer of Technology

The solution was that Ning Wei re-drawn the content of the check-list, which directly increased from more than 300 before to 1207.This time, I have thought of all the problems exposed by the first tape-out, and listed some possible hidden problems in advance.

No way, this stuff is too expensive to tap out.

Intel may only need a few hundred million yuan for one tape-out. After all, the previous technology is very mature, but the new technology is different. The total cost of one tape-out is about 35 billion, and it looks like nearly 40 billion.

Don't think it's too expensive, after all, for Huaxin Precision, which is in charge of tape-out, the investment in tape-out is also huge.It is said that in order to cooperate with the tape-out, the engineers who adjusted and modified the equipment parameters also did not rest for more than half a year.Everyone is working hard to meet the various supporting technical parameters and ensure that the progress will not be delayed due to equipment problems.

Of course, the price of a single tape-out can probably be flattened if there are multiple tape-outs, for example, ten tape-outs or eight tape-outs, but everyone can't stand such a toss.

After all, it is impossible for the company to live on ideals. The more than 40 people in Ningsi Lab with an average monthly salary of more than 1k cannot rely on northwest wind to feed themselves. The chip design and production he led are directly lost...

The pure investment of more than 500 billion a year is still the kind that does not see the return rate at all for the time being, which is enough to suffocate the pressure of the helmsman. The last time Ning Wei saw Yan Ming, he found that the vice president had recently begun to lose his top. Yes, the hairline has moved back at least two inches.After the cpu design is successful, I'm afraid it's time for hair transplantation.

At this time, Ning Wei has re-uploaded the overall design after four months to the server and started to do the final integrity verification. The three students he brought just now have also been busy for ten years according to his requirements. After many hours, all the parameter standards were set, and Sanyue wasted a huge amount of computing power, and simultaneously started the digital simulation of the [-]D simulation circuit...

Now the master and apprentice finally breathed a sigh of relief, eating pastries and chatting in the lounge.

No one wants to rest. Although they know that the entire verification process in the final stage will last more than 30 hours, the main emotion at this moment is excitement.

The first real desktop CPU with completely independent property rights in Chinese history, and the first real three-dimensional desktop CPU in human history, was completed by myself. As long as it is successful, it will definitely be recorded in history in the future.

From this point of view, you can see the benefits of choosing a master-level mentor. If you are lucky, if you get a certain project, you may be famous in history.Of course, the odds are slim.

"Director Ning, have you read the news? Intel's 12th and 13th generation CPUs have cut prices across the board. This time it's for real, and even the mainboard has been cut in price. It is said that the 14th generation CPU is about to be released, so warm up for the 14th generation CPU in advance. !"

"Oh!" Ning Wei, who was drinking milk tea, responded casually.

The milk tea is love milk tea made by Jiang at home.

Because I would rather like to drink it, I am worried about buying it from a milk tea shop, so I just make it myself.The specific method is rather indifferent, probably boil fresh milk, add sugar, tea leaves and starch, and finally filter the tea dregs and drink it.

How should I put it, because the little Ning Ke in the family likes to drink very much, he can't drink much at a time, and he is always greedy. It is impossible for classmate Jiang to satisfy the requirements of Ning Ke's children all the time, so Ning Wei simply made a set of Tetra Pak packaging crafts in the backyard. For machines and disinfection equipment, Mr. Jiang does it once and fills [-] to [-] boxes. Ning Wei always brings a few boxes with him when he goes to the laboratory.

Of course, the main thing is the rich and willful troubles. Just as Liu Wei predicted before, after Xiao Ning Ke was born, Ning Wei finally let Ning Wei enjoy the fun of being rich...

Although Xiao Ning Ke is only over two years old now, she already has a toy room of her own, with all kinds of educational and non-educational ones. Basically, as long as Ning Ke takes a fancy to it, Ning Wei will buy it back.

In addition, there is a big screen in the toy room, and there is a cat on the big screen. As long as Ning Ke is in the room, the cat is ready to interact with the little princess at any time, even if it is to "babble" to the screen , the kitten will also blink its eyes, and "meow meow" twice, giving the little princess a perfect feedback.

More often, this kitten also takes on the responsibility of teaching when Ning Ke’s children show various curiosity. For example, now Ning Ke’s little princess can already call out the names of several animals and recite several ancient poems. I can count from 1 to 20 thanks to this cat.

Ever since I found out that this cat can teach children patience and the effect is far better than that of adults, no matter whether it is grandparents, mothers, or grandmothers, they have given up the task of teaching children literacy. As for Dad, when he is free at home, he can He only cares about playing with Xiao Ning. After all, Ning Wei doesn't have much time to rest and play. How can he think about teaching children to learn knowledge?

"Director Ning, you can't underestimate people. Look, the intel i9 13900 has dropped by 3000 yuan in one breath. Now you can get it for only 6200 yuan. The i7 13700k only costs 1800 yuan, and the i5 13400 has dropped to 999 yuan. I don’t even believe that it was killed to make way for the 14th generation, did Intel receive some rumors that our cpu may be mass-produced soon, and we will directly start the price reduction mode and harvest a wave first?” Zhou Zhenghao couldn’t help emphasizing.

As the first batch of direct Ph.D. students recruited by Ningwei, after studying with Ningwei for a year, Zhou Zhenghao directly chose the direction of smart chips, so he was more concerned about the industry dynamics. After signing the contract, Huawei will still settle in Ningsi Lab after getting a doctorate degree. This also means that the response of the first-generation CPU market will directly determine his future career development plan, so he naturally pays more attention to market trends.

This is also the reason why Ningwei has been working with the three students Meng Runze, Lu Ying, and Zhou Zhenghao when he is working on a cnmd architecture CPU. It is not partiality, or these three are the best learners among all the students, mainly because Meng Runze Both Lu Ying and Lu Ying also chose the development direction of intelligent hardware.

Others have main topics that are more software, algorithm and language-oriented, and are still deeply involved in theory, and their research directions have nothing to do with it.

"What's the rush, isn't this normal? It's strange that Intel doesn't know about our movement. Of course, a price cut of this scale is also normal. There must be some meaning of suppression. Our cpu has come out, whether it can be replaced in the personal application market is indeed a problem. The pricing of our cpu is also a problem. If I were Pat Kelsinger, I would choose to cut the price at this juncture. It just happens to be the Spring Festival. , but also disrupt the holiday market by the way. This fully shows that Intel's market analysis and marketing department is very qualified."

Ning Wei put down the milk tea, moved his eyes away from the monitor, and carefully analyzed a wave for Zhou Zhenghao.

"Then what should I do? If my cpu is launched together with Intel's 14th generation, do you think they will set an ultra-low price for 14th as well?" Zhou Zhenghao asked worriedly.

This time, without waiting for Ningwei to answer, Meng Runze next to him answered naturally: "Zhou, isn't this normal? It is certain that the price of 14 is lower than that of previous new products. I looked at the recent Intel The patent library applied for has not had any major technological breakthroughs in the past two years. 12 is so amazing, and you know that 13 is more powerful. I guess 14 will not be so bright. This is when 13 comes out, our CPU is still The design has not been completed, otherwise the price reduction will not wait until now.”

"Second!" Lu Ying, who was less talkative, also expressed his opinion.

"Actually, I know it too, but I just feel a little panicked. Speaking of which, the money invested back and forth can at least build four or five aircraft carriers. Now it's at the end of the day. If the market does not perform well in the end, I don't know that Ning Si will still insist on it." If you don’t persist.” Zhou Zhenghao shrugged.

This is probably a typical care disorder.

Compared to other people, Zhou Zhenghao has followed the cpu the most in the past three years, and Ning Wei is indeed training him in this direction.

Now the first generation of cnmd structure cpu is still using 64nm process technology, the goal Zhou Zhenghao set for himself is also very simple, in his lifetime, to advance the cnmd structure production process to the 1nm era, according to the extremely scientific and rigorous mathematics passed in March The model predicts that this goal is completely achievable.

Of course, the premise of this realization is that the products of this generation can be sold well. In other words, the market for cnmd structure cpu can support everyone’s confidence in continuing to research and improve the technology. Investment will continue.

That's not to say the project will be abandoned.

Zhou Zhenghao, who has been working on the chip project for two years, naturally understands that the cpu with completely independent property rights will definitely not be given up, and there will definitely be orders, but if there is too much difference between the effort and the harvest, this technology may also be used as a strategic reserve technology.

In other words, as long as the first-generation cnmd-structure general-purpose CPU is produced, it is confirmed that the performance can indeed be comparable to that of the world-class general-purpose CPU, such as the CPU of the Core architecture, but the product cannot be profitable, or the profit is not enough to support the next generation. It is impossible for Ningsi to continue to operate at full capacity like it is now, and it is estimated that it is lucky to be able to retain a team of [-] people in the end. Most of the people will be forced to divert to other positions to do profitable work. project, or have to choose to leave.

In this case, there will definitely not be much support for R&D funds, and technical iterations may only follow the fate.

Of course, with technical reserves, if one day Intel can’t think about it, feels that the threat is not big, and dares to increase prices indiscriminately or implement some neck-blocking policies, there will probably be a large amount of capital injection, and the project will be revived immediately.

But for a person who regards this matter as a career in the future, wasting time because of lack of money is absolutely intolerable.After all, most of these people have no concept of money and don't regard money as the master of money.

Meng Runze said with a smile: "Zhou, why are you panicking? Our cpu focuses on differentiated competition. It is designed to match the operating system. If you are really worried about calling Chen Yuru and Lu Yuanzheng every day, ask them How is Huawei Hongmeng preparing for the upgrade? As long as the system is not compromised, our chip sales should not be too bad."

Ning Wei smiled as he listened to the conversation between the three students, he was naturally very clear about Zhou Zhenghao's worries.

It's just that he can't express his opinion now.

To be honest, although he presided over the overall work from the instruction set to the chip design of the first-generation cnmd-structure CPU, and he has been following up with the system upgrade of the Hongmeng system to cooperate with the CPU, but whether the market can pay for it in the end depends on him. I dare not pat my chest and guarantee that it will work.

This is a complementary issue, and even the most critical point is not on the chip side.

Ningwei still has confidence in the performance of the chip, but Ningwei is not too sure about the acceptance of the upgraded desktop system.No way, this generation of CPUs still failed to get the support of Microsoft in the end, and the compatible Hongmeng system has made many extremely bold updates, which involves a problem of operating habits.

What Ningwei can guarantee is only some orders in key positions, and there will definitely be many.However, without popular market support, he dare not guarantee whether this generation of CPUs can recover the cost and even sell well under Intel's full siege.

More importantly, even if the cpu is successfully taped out and enters mass production, the early products will definitely not have any price advantage.

Not to mention that Intel has decisively lowered the price now, even the selling price before the price reduction and the cost allocated are unacceptable.

According to the suggested price given in March, the most perfect cnmd structure cpu, 128-core design, supports up to 3.6g memory, and the main frequency can reach up to 2000ghz. The price is about as high as the retail price of the 12th generation Shenu. If various distribution costs, taxes, and warranty costs are added, the price will probably double, so that it can be profitable.

This is still based on the fact that the yield rate of mass production must reach 80.00%. If the yield rate does not reach this price, the price will have to be increased to give everyone the motivation to continue.

In this case, it is really difficult for Ning Wei to talk about the market... After all, it really cannot be determined by technology alone...

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367 That's it

In fact, I really want to say something more to my students. For example, the subversive innovation of the new generation of Hongmeng system is still very competitive, so there is no need to be too pessimistic. Say nothing.

In fact, they don't have much to do in the next tape-out process, and they don't need to pay special attention to it. It is enough to follow the process.Given how much the investor attaches importance to this cpu project, it is unlikely that there will be any problems in this link.Moreover, most of the processes are automatically controlled by March, and the various explanatory documents that should be available have been as detailed as possible.

Now it is mainly hoped that the tape-out will be successful, and you can wait for the tape-out to be successful.

Of course, the success of tape-out does not mean that everything will be fine immediately.There are still a lot of things to do next, such as running in with other hardware manufacturers.Although Huawei's self-owned Kunpeng series motherboards have already made preparations in advance to adapt to the new chips, but to really open up the market, it is impossible to rely solely on Kunpeng motherboards, and other motherboard manufacturers have to discuss one by one.

There are still Intel and amd in the middle of it.Negotiations with mainstream motherboard manufacturers have continued, but most other manufacturers are still waiting and watching.The various interface indicators of the chip have been given to these hardware manufacturers early, including various low-level interface documents of the new generation of Hongmeng desktop system, which have been prepared early, but most hardware motherboard manufacturers are still waiting and watching.

Of course, this cannot be blamed on these motherboard manufacturers.

Not to mention those foreign brands, even domestic brands would not dare to offend Intel, amd, and Microsoft at the same time before the [-]D silicon-integrated cpu samples are released.

Although it is said that CPU manufacturers and motherboard manufacturers are complementary, there is no doubt that compared to motherboard manufacturers blooming all over the world, CPU manufacturers with higher technical content are still in a strong position.After all, the standards are in the hands of chip manufacturers, and when the future is still unclear, no one dares to speak directly to the [-]D CPU, which is still in its infancy.

To persuade those downstream motherboard manufacturers to support their chips at the risk of being sanctioned by Intel and AMD, after all, it depends on the market performance.Of course, these are not issues that Ningwei needs to consider, he only cares about technology.

Of course there are difficulties, but there is also self-confidence.

Although the general performance of the [-]D chip can only be said to be quite satisfactory, the integrated AI module is an absolute highlight. It is specially designed to fit the AI ​​computing mode designed by March, and this is the real strength of this chip.

To put it simply, the more you sell and the more you usually run, the more computing power the network system built in March can call.Including the new version of the Hongmeng system, the bottom layer has also been updated synchronously, just to match the intelligent features of the system.

At the same time, there are also great innovations in display. The new chip and system will support the frame-type [-]D display structure, but for the time being, this technology is tested before the chip is matched with the operating system and the latest display. ox.

There are still some control and operation problems that cannot be solved. Even if they can be solved perfectly, people's usage habits still need to be considered.

But Ning Wei also looked away, and there was nothing he could do about the headache. After all, everything had to be resolved one by one.

So after listening to the discussion of several students, I just simply smiled at the end and said: "Okay, I've been tired for the past two days, so I should go to have a rest quickly. You have to stay up all night with Ning Si's engineer to find problems."

After being a doctoral supervisor for three years and becoming a father for the first time, the 28-year-old Ning Wei still looks extremely young, but after all, his words are a bit more dignified, and the former sharpness has gradually become restrained. .

This is also impossible.

In Ning Wei's words, to be a teacher is to act like a teacher.It's not good, and I'm still bluffing like I was a student.

The biggest feature of this transformation is that Ning Wei already has a temperament that is not angry but powerful.

This is probably the reason why Chen Diancheng, who is not afraid of anything, sees Ning Wei like a mouse meets a cat.

In fact, Ning Wei seldom criticizes the students under his command. If anyone can't keep up with their homework, Ning Wei just glances at them and let them hang out for two days.

The reason is actually very simple...

The other tutors said they would expel you, but that’s all they really mean. Firstly, the tutors don’t have that power. Schools usually get along with each other when encountering such things. As long as the students don’t commit suicide and don’t violate those serious school rules Ji, if you don’t violate the law, it will take five or six years at most to persuade you to quit. During this period, as long as you can meet the graduation requirements, the tutor will send you to graduate quickly. After all, just occupying the position and doing nothing means wasting One recruitment quota for tutors;

Secondly, for many tutors, if they really get rid of their students, it is also bad for their own reputation. Most of the bosses who can become graduate tutors still have to cherish some feathers...

But Ning Wei would be really deterrent if he opened his mouth to dissuade someone, and Ning Wei didn't need to consider the so-called reputation and face issues at all.In his own words, he has earned enough fame in his life, and it is difficult to keep a low profile.In this case, if Ning Wei persuaded them to quit, everyone would only think that their students' research ability is not good, or they have defects in their conduct.

This kind of pressure is simply impossible to experience with ordinary tutors.

The youngest academician in all of China, who has never come before or since, won various awards at home and abroad, not to mention, he has also set up a global science award, which will be awarded for the fourth time soon. Awards have also begun to become more and more important in the international academic arena. Almost every year the award ceremony has a vote of celebrities from the academic and technological circles to join, and they are never absent...

Even Ning Wei has been too lazy to publish papers in recent years.Almost every year, it is like completing a task, publishing a paper in the March Smart Journal, and the rest of the time is to lead students and do chip projects.

It turns out that students like them have published a few papers in some top journals and regional journals, and they are listed as corresponding authors of Ning Wei.But in fact, they all know that the starting point of Ning Weihang as the corresponding author is completely different from that of most tutors. He is willing to let them write his name in the column of corresponding author because of the face of his own students and because he thinks the paper is not bad. .

After all, it is generally recognized that it is better for the corresponding author to write the name of his own tutor in the column, and it will always be reviewed first.The waiting time for feedback is definitely more than twice as fast as other students.Of course, the premise is that their dear supervisor has to approve the paper, or can meet the minimum standard of the supervisor.

In the past three years with Ning Wei, they have seen with their own eyes many academician-level bigwigs in related research directions come to their door, hoping to cooperate with their mentors to tackle various topics, and even have done similar topics. They hope to co-sign with Ning Wei , were flatly rejected by their tutors, one can imagine how lucky they are.

This also makes everyone cherish the opportunity to learn from Ningwei even more.Especially these direct Ph.D. students feel the pressure almost every day. After all, there are geniuses from Ning Ban who are desperately chasing after them.

In particular, the crazy leaders of the Ning class headed by Chen Diancheng, the Ning Society that they fiddled with in the undergraduate stage is already against the sky, and they can come directly to graduate school a year in advance. After that, they are destined to be against the sky. No sense of crisis?

At present, Li Jingwen, the only female student under Ningwei, has secretly cried several times because of academic pressure.

But in fact, Ning Wei doesn't really want to do this. After all, he is still young, and he is still at the age where he likes to talk about things. In his dormitory group, chat with his old roommates to have fun.

Tired!

Watching his three students go to rest obediently, Ning Wei drank the last sip of milk tea, was about to talk to Liu Wei, and then went back to the suite to lie down for a while, but the computer at hand suddenly turned on by itself, and then A cat jumped out...

"Meow……"

"Ok?"

"Meow... a member of the society that is highly suspected of being a commercial espionage has been found in the Ning Society."

"What? Ningshe has commercial spies?"

……

This turn was really a little hasty, and Ning Wei was stunned.

To be honest, he was actually quite insensitive to the term commercial espionage, but after a while he suddenly came to his senses and thought of Liu Wei...

Probably because it is so well protected, I always feel that this kind of ghost tricks of business competition is quite far away from me. At least he has done research for so long and he has never heard of such a thing. Of course, he did not expect that , members of the Ning Society actually have commercial spies...

After all, the Ning Society has only been established for three years, and it is essentially a student association within the school.Although there is no such thing as quitting now, generally as long as you leave the school, you will not hold any positions. Even if you keep your membership in the club, it is actually useless. At most, you will have the opportunity to return to school and have dinner with your former friends If you are too miserable, you can apply for a graduation support fund from the club; or if you become a successful person, donate another sum of money to the club...

Of course, the latter two have not yet appeared.

Although the Ning Society, which is not short of money, has prepared a special fund to help the members of the society early on, and it is said that the total amount has reached eight figures, but so far no one has applied for it.It is said that this money has been left in the cargo base and ate interest for a year.

In short, if you are a graduate who has been in contact with the society, it is definitely impossible to get in touch with the technology that the club is researching. If you are still a student...

Students are already commercial espionage, how promising is this?

"Meow...it's highly suspicious, and it needs to be confirmed by investigation and evidence collection." Sanyue held her neck high, with a proud kitten face, and strictly limited it.

"Oh!" Ning Wei subconsciously picked up the phone, just about to look through the address book and call Chen Diancheng to inquire about the situation. After thinking about it, he didn't dial out, but walked out of the laboratory building. Walking on the main road, he walked slowly to the rest room in Building 1 and knocked on the door.

"Come in... Huh? Are you done?" Liu Wei, who was reading a book, looked up at Ning Wei, then lowered her head and continued to study the book in her hand.

Having been together day and night for these years, the two have gotten too familiar with each other.

In addition, the relationship between the two is also very unique. It is not strictly a subordinate. After all, Liu Wei’s salary is not paid by Ning Wei. In Ning Wei’s understanding, the relationship between him and Liu Wei probably belongs to a cooperative relationship. Like close comrades in arms.

It can also be said that they are friends, the kind who can confide unscrupulously if they have something on their minds.After all, Liu Wei is different from his former roommates. His mouth is very strict. The unofficial content and daily complaints that the two of them usually chat with have not been uttered from Liu Wei's mouth in three years...

What makes Ning Wei even more satisfied is that although Liu Wei still insists on high-intensity exercise every day, he is still the same as Ning Wei, and he has obviously become "fat" in the past three years.This probably shows that the relationship between whether a person grows fat and the amount of exercise is actually not as great as imagined, and it is more controlled by the body's own metabolic rate.

Of course, the "fat" here does not exceed the normal weight range.For example, Ning Wei has grown from 60kg to 68kg. Compared with the height of 136 meters, the weight of 1.78 catties can only be said to have changed from being thin to becoming well-proportioned.

What makes Ning Wei angry is that his fat tends to develop toward his stomach, while Liu Wei's body shape is maintained very well. The extra flesh only makes his body bigger, for example, his arms are really thicker lock up.

Well, this probably shows that although the effect of exercise in preventing muscle growth is not obvious, it can really make muscle fibers thicker.

"I'll tell you something very strange, don't be too surprised!" Ning Wei said mysteriously after closing the office door.

Liu Wei is probably now that there are few people around Ningwei who don't need to put on airs when they are alone together, they can indulge their youthful nature, and it is very comfortable to communicate with.