Google is preparing two brand new chips under its TPUv8 belt, one for training & one for inference AI workloads.
Google TPUv8 Lineup Expected To Be Unveiled Next Week, Focusing on AI Inference & Training While Boosting The Semiconductor Supply Chain
Reports indicate that Google is working on not one, not two, but three chips that will form the basis of its next-gen TPU and AI ventures. We already discussed two of these chips, the memory processing unit and the next-gen TPU series.
Now, more details have emerged regarding what to expect from the next-gen TPU series. The TPUv8 AI chip family will replace the existing TPUv7 "Ironwood" lineup that Google has been offering since 2025. The two new chips that are expected next week include TPUv8t and TPUv8i.
The primary area of focus for these two chips is relatively straightforward. The TPUv8i is codenamed "Zebrafish" and designed as a cost-efficient inference accelerator, while the TPUv8t is codenamed "Sunfish" and designed as a high-performance training accelerator. The inference chip "TPU 8i" will be designed by Mediatek, while the training chip "TPU 8t" will be designed by Broadcom.
Notice that neither of the two chips is being designed by Marvell, which was reportedly working with Google for its next-gen TPU family. It seems like this collaboration should involve either a custom TPU solution or a next-gen "post TPUv8" series.
Both Google TPUv8 series AI chips will be tightly integrated with the company's Axion Arm CPUs. Based on the Neoverse N3 Armv9.2 core architecture, Axion processors have been deployed since 2024 and will be the go-to choice for the next-gen lineup.
Google's latest v8 architecture Tensor Processing Unit (TPU) is expected to be unveiled this week, which will not only boost the semiconductor and assembly supply chain markets, but also create a series of upgrade opportunities for peripheral components, including OCS all-optical switches, liquid cooling, power supplies, and optical communications companies.
The upcoming Google TPU family is also expected to be a further boost for the semiconductor markets, leading to a boost across the entire industry. At the same time, this also means that overall supply will be further constrained as massive orders are expected to power Google's worldwide servers & AI ecosystem.
About the author: A Software Engineer by training and a PC enthusiast by passion, Hassan Mujtaba serves as Wccftech's Senior Editor for hardware section. With years of experience in the industry, he specializes in deep-dive technical analysis of next-generation CPU and GPU architectures, motherboards, and cooling solutions. His work involves not only breaking news on upcoming technologies but also extensive hands-on reviews and benchmarking.
Follow Wccftech on Google to get more of our news coverage in your feeds.
