How a low-cost AI chip can boost a hypersonic weapon
A research team has created a step-by-step guide that allows anyone with a low-cost artificial intelligence chip to boost the performance of hypersonic weapons.
The researchers installed a Nvidia Jetson TX2i GPU computer module – which can be bought online – into an aircraft capable of flying at seven times the speed of sound.
Tests suggest that this module can process fluid dynamics models with unprecedented efficiency, meaning calculations that previously took seconds to complete could now be done in just 25 milliseconds – four times faster than the blink of an eye.
The module’s response speed made it ideal for use with the aircraft, according to a project team from Beijing Power Machinery Research Institute and Dalian University of Technology.
Their paper was published last month in the Chinese academic journal Propulsion Technology.
The Beijing Power Machinery Research Institute is affiliated with China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation, a major supplier of hypersonic weapons. Dalian University of Technology, closely associated with China’s navy, is a key research base for advanced manufacturing.
Headquartered in the United States, Nvidia is the world’s largest supplier of AI chips.
It began selling the TX2i for industrial applications about six years ago.
It has about one-fiftieth of the capability of the company’s most powerful AI chip, the H100.
The H100, however, costs tens of thousands of US dollars and is in short supply. The TX2i, on the other hand, can be obtained for a few hundred dollars, is not subject to US export controls and is widely available online.
When contacted by the Post last Friday, Nvidia said it had no comment on the matter.
The project team, led by Professor Sun Ximing, said in their paper that the TX2i in the scramjet engine control system not only boosted the range and stability of hypersonic vehicles, but also significantly reduced their research and development costs.
This was not the first time that Chinese scientists have used US chips in hypersonic weapon research, according to their paper.
Previous studies used Intel CPUs and Nvidia’s high-end graphics cards to simulate complex high-speed flow fields.
“High-performance graphics cards possess excellent computational capabilities but require supporting equipment such as a hosting platform, power supply and radiator.
“They have disadvantages such as high power consumption, heavy weight and large size, which do not meet the demands of lightweight and small-sized embedded controllers in the aerospace field,” Sun’s team wrote.
Because of the sequential nature of hypersonic flow field simulations, where one event must occur before another can be calculated, industry experts generally believe that such computational tasks cannot be done using lower-end AI chips.
To solve this problem, Sun’s team introduced a novel chip architecture.
Still, the likelihood of the TX2i being used for Chinese hypersonic missiles is low. Domestic manufacturers can provide chips to the military that perform as well as, or better, than the TX2i, with minimal concerns over supply chain reliability and safety.
It remains unclear why the researchers selected the Nvidia chip for their experiment, and the authors could not be reached for comment.
It is possible the intention was to prove the feasibility of using an inexpensive AI chip for hypersonic weapons, regardless of where it is made. However, such weapons can operate with different types of chips.
While few countries are able to design and manufacture such chips, a growing number of nations, including Germany, France, Japan, North Korea and Iran have launched hypersonic weapon programmes.
Even the Houthis, an Iranianbacked rebel group that controls most of Yemen, have claimed they have been testing hypersonic missiles capable of reaching Mach 8.
The proliferation of hypersonic weapon technology has been a major concern for the United States. In 2017, the Rand Corporation suggested that Washington work with Moscow and Beijing to prevent other countries from acquiring such technology.
But while Chinese and Russian military experts admit hypersonic weapons technology poses certain risks, they said it was more likely to accelerate the collapse of the US-centred world order.
They believe hypersonic missiles could penetrate the defences of the US aircraft carrier fleet, which the country has long relied on for global military superiority.