Researchers from Hewlett-Packard Enterprise on Tuesday unveiled what they claimed was a breakthrough in computing with a new machine capable of handling vast amounts of data at supercomputing speeds. The prototype named simple "the Machine" uses a new approach to computer architecture which the company says can be adapted for a range of Big Data applications, handling tasks at thousands of times the speed of existing devices.

The new system is called "memory driven computing" and uses light waves to transmit data instead of electrical impulses traveling over silicon, bypassing what engineers say is an obstacle to boosting computing speeds. Sharad Singhal, who heads machine applications for HPE, said previous efforts to boost computing power "were running into a brick wall into computation" because computing needs are increasing beyond the capacity of existing chips. The prototype unveiled contains 160 terabytes of memory, capable of simultaneously working with the contents of approximately 160 million books, a task never before possible in a single unit.

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2017