Raspberry Pi has teamed up with Sony to unveil the $70 Raspberry Pi AI Camera, a module designed to bring edge AI capabilities to all Raspberry Pi microcomputers without the need for additional accelerators or a GPU.
Announced today, the AI Camera module enables users to easily develop edge AI solutions that process visual data directly on the device, according to Raspberry Pi. This marks a significant step in the company’s ongoing expansion into AI-focused hardware, building on its previous camera modules, which began with a 5-megapixel release back in 2013.
“AI-based image processing is becoming an attractive tool for developers worldwide,” said Raspberry Pi CEO Eben Upton in a press release. “We’re excited to see how our community leverages the new Raspberry Pi AI Camera’s potential.”
A Powerful Combination of Raspberry Pi and Sony Technology
The AI Camera integrates Raspberry Pi’s RP2040 microcontroller chip with Sony’s IMX500 image sensor, which handles the AI processing directly on the camera. This onboard AI processing eliminates the need for external components like accelerators or GPUs, typically required for intensive visual data processing. As a result, the camera is a self-contained solution for developers looking to incorporate AI into their projects without additional hardware.
Key Specs and Features
The Raspberry Pi AI Camera features a 12.3-megapixel sensor capable of capturing footage at 10 frames per second (fps) with a resolution of 4056 x 3040, or at 40 fps with a resolution of 2028 x 1520. It also includes a manually adjustable focus, a 76-degree field of view, and a compact form factor measuring just 25 x 24 x 11.9 mm — nearly identical to last year’s Raspberry Pi Camera Module 3.
With its affordability and wide compatibility across all Raspberry Pi single-board computers, this new AI Camera is poised to empower a new wave of AI-powered applications, from image recognition to real-time data processing, without the need for expensive or complex hardware setups.
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