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takyon [soylentnews.org] writes:

SiFive to Debut RISC-V PC for Developers based on Freedom U740 next-gen SoC [cnx-software.com]

In recent years, people have discussed the need to have Arm-based PCs or workstations for developers to work directly on the target hardware, and there are now several options including SynQuacer E-Series 24-Core Arm PC [cnx-software.com], Ampere eMAG 64bit Arm Workstation [cnx-software.com], and HoneyComb LX2K 16-core Arm Workstation [cnx-software.com].

Now it appears we'll soon get something similar for RISC-V architecture with SiFive to debut the first RISC-V PC for developers at the Linley Fall Processor Conference 2020 taking place on October 20-22 and October 27-29. The PC will be powered by Freedom U740 next-generation RISC-V processor that will also be introduced at the event.

We have very few details about this point in time, but the company points the SiFive Freedom U740 (FU740) SoC will enable professional developers to create RISC-V applications from bare-metal to Linux-based. The processor is said to combines a heterogeneous mix+match core complex with modern PC expansion capabilities, which probably means PCIe, SATA etc.., and the company will provide tools to ease professional software development.

Freedom U740 details are unknown, but Freedom U540 [wikipedia.org] is a quad-core CPU that was used in the HiFive Unleashed single-board computer.

Related: SiFive Introduces RISC-V Linux-Capable Multicore Processor [soylentnews.org]
SiFive HiFive Unleashed Not as Open as Previously Thought [soylentnews.org]
SiFive Announces a RISC-V Core With an Out-of-Order Microarchitecture [soylentnews.org]
GlobalFoundries and SiFive Partner on High Bandwidth Memory (HBM2E) [soylentnews.org]

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