Speaker
Description
Abstract-The exponential rise of edge computing necessitates robust, power-efficient, and open hardware platforms capable of supporting AI inference, 3D & Video processing, and general-purpose computing within constrained environments. Whereas x86 and ARM architectures dominate this space, they introduce licensing, cost, and security barriers. In contrast, the RISC-V64 architecture promises a truly open and modular alternative, but its adoption in real-world, application-ready edge systems remains limited due to several critical challenges: lack of mature software stacks, inadequate hardware acceleration support, and minimal integration with mainstream desktop environments.
This paper introduces a RISC-V based Single Board Computer (SBC) running a fully operational Ubuntu 22.04 Linux distribution, architected specifically for edge intelligence workloads. A key innovation is the support for the GNOME-Wayland Window Manager, fully optimized for RISC-V with hardware acceleration via Mesa and OpenGL-ES & Vulkan-compatible drivers and GPU offloading. We demonstrate seamless execution of complex open-source desktop applications such as Mozilla Firefox, LibreOffice, MPV Media Player (4K playback with real-time hardware Video decoding), and Geney & Jupyter Web IDE, all running natively on the RISC-V64 Ubuntu 22.04 SBC. This paper demonstrates the feasibility of RISC-V as a high-performance edge computing architecture. The proposed system effectively bridges the usability gap in RISC-V-based environments but also demonstrates a scalable path for mass adoption in open-source driven, hardware-accelerated edge intelligence platforms.
| Category | Use of GNOME Technologies outside of desktop |
|---|---|
| Talk Description | To presents the design, implementation, and comprehensive validation of a RISC-V64 based Single Board Computer (SBC) capable of running a full-fledged Ubuntu 22.04 graphical desktop environment. The proposed system is realized as an Ubuntu-capable RISC-V System-on-Chip (SoC), constructed using a combination of open-source building blocks and internally developed Intellectual Property (IP) components to ensure extensibility, performance, and compliance with the RV64GC profile. Key contributions include the enablement of GNOME-Wayland desktop support, hardware-accelerated graphics pipelines, and optimized multimedia subsystems necessary for modern Ubuntu Desktop workloads. |
| Author(s) Bio | Team Lead at Exaleap Semiconductor Pvt Ltd.. |
| Pronouns | I, He, Him |
| Where are you located? | India |
| Do you need travel sponsorship from GNOME Foundation in order to join our event? | Yes |