Microsoft Integrates Neural Rendering into DirectX: A New Era for AI-Powered Graphics

Microsoft prepares DirectX neural rendering for AI-powered graphics

Microsoft is advancing its DirectX API to support neural rendering, signaling a transformative shift in graphics rendering by incorporating AI and machine learning. This development, highlighted in a recent blog post, is designed to enhance visual quality and efficiency in gaming and other graphics-intensive applications. Neural rendering makes use of machine learning models to generate or enhance visual elements such as textures, lighting, and image upscaling. By offloading complex rendering tasks to AI, this approach improves both performance and visual fidelity while reducing the computational burden on traditional rendering pipelines. Technologies like Nvidia's DLSS and AMD's FSR have already demonstrated the potential of AI-enhanced rendering. Microsoft's initiative seeks to provide a standardized, open framework for such capabilities within the widely used DirectX API. A key feature of the forthcoming DirectX update is Cooperative Vector Support. This feature will enhance AI workloads for real-time rendering by optimizing matrix-vector operations crucial for AI tasks like training, fine-tuning, and inferencing. This feature allows AI tasks to run in different shader stages, enabling efficient execution of neural networks, such as in a pixel shader, without monopolizing the GPU. By integrating neural graphics into DirectX applications, it provides access to AI-accelerator hardware across platforms, empowering developers to create more immersive experiences. Microsoft has confirmed that Cooperative vectors will leverage Tensor Cores in Nvidia's new RTX 50-series GPUs to enable neural shaders, enhancing game asset visualization, optimizing geometry for improved path tracing, and supporting tools for creating photorealistic game characters. Microsoft's High-Level Shading Language (HLSL) team is said to be working closely with major GPU manufacturers, including AMD, Intel, Nvidia, and Qualcomm, to ensure these new capabilities are optimized for a wide range of hardware architectures. By embedding neural rendering capabilities into DirectX, Microsoft could broaden the adoption of AI-driven graphics across multiple platforms. Potential applications range from enhanced real-time ray tracing to adaptive resolution scaling for high-definition displays. While proprietary AI rendering technologies have been limited to specific ecosystems, Microsoft's open approach could democratize access, fostering greater innovation and competition. Though the updates are still in development and lack a definitive release date, they highlight the increasing role of AI in shaping the future of graphics technology.

DirectX Integrates AI-Powered Neural Rendering and Cooperative Vector Support

Microsoft is updating its DirectX API to include neural rendering capabilities, representing a significant advancement in graphics processing that leverages artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques. This enhancement is outlined in a technical blog post and is intended to increase both the visual quality and efficiency of graphics-intensive applications, particularly in gaming. Neural rendering employs machine learning models to create or refine visual details such as textures, lighting, and image upscaling. By shifting complex rendering calculations to AI algorithms, this approach can improve performance and image fidelity while alleviating pressure on traditional rendering pipelines. Similar AI-driven rendering methods, like Nvidia's DLSS and AMD's FSR, have showcased the potential benefits of integrating machine learning into graphics processing. Microsoft's initiative aims to offer a standardized framework for neural rendering, making such advanced techniques more widely accessible through the DirectX platform. A feature of the upcoming DirectX update is Cooperative Vector Support, which plays a crucial role in optimizing AI-related computations within real-time rendering environments. This capability focuses on streamlining matrix-vector operations that are fundamental to AI processes such as training, fine-tuning, and inference. Cooperative Vector Support enables these AI tasks to be executed across different shader stages. For instance, it allows certain neural network operations to run in pixel shaders without fully occupying GPU resources. This distributed approach optimizes resource utilization and can improve the performance of tasks like real-time path tracing or the creation of detailed, photorealistic character models. Additionally, this development supports neural shaders that utilize specialized processing units, such as the Tensor Cores found in Nvidia's RTX series of GPUs, to enhance visualization of game assets and geometry. By embedding such advanced functionalities into DirectX, Microsoft is working with major GPU vendors -- including AMD, Intel, Nvidia, and Qualcomm -- to ensure these enhancements are compatible with a wide range of hardware architectures. Integrating neural rendering capabilities into DirectX could expand the adoption of AI-driven graphics across various platforms and applications. By offering an open framework, Microsoft's approach may encourage greater experimentation and innovation in graphics development. Potential outcomes include improved real-time ray tracing, dynamic resolution scaling tailored for high-definition displays, and optimized asset creation workflows. Source: microsoft

Microsoft DirectX To Integrate Neural Rendering For AI-Focused Graphics, Cooperative Vectors Unlock Full Power of NVIDIA's RTX 50 Tensor Core GPUs

Microsoft has now enabled the "highly-anticipated" neural rendering with its DirectX API, allowing GPUs to leverage AI capabilities to transform graphical computation. Well, neural rendering in GPUs is the next big thing and is currently the industry's on the topic. We saw how NVIDIA's CEO Jensen Huang described the importance of neural rendering in learning and predicting elements of the rendering process, and it seems like the industry is finally transitioning into this idea. In a blog post, Microsoft revealed that DirectX will now support neural rendering across different architectures, along with adding in "cooperative vector" support to DirectX, ultimately accelerating AI workloads across consumer and professional GPUs. Microsoft is excited to partner with NVIDIA to catalyze this next generation of graphics programming by bringing industry-wide support for neural shading technology. DirectX will soon support Cooperative Vectors, which will unlock the power of Tensor Cores on NVIDIA GeForce RTX hardware and enable game developers to fully accelerate neural shaders on Windows - Bryan Langley, Microsoft For those unaware, cooperative vector support refers to a method of GPUs to process data, by dynamically adjusting the processing of data in groups of varying sizes. This is done by optimizing matrix-vector operations, and through this, not only will the AI workload process be much faster, but the cooperative vector allows more efficient utilization of GPU resources for variable-sized data processing, allowing developers to leverage the feature for optimal neural rendering output. Microsoft has also validated that DirectX neural rendering and cooperative vector implementation will be supported by NVIDIA's newest RTX 50 series GPUs, allowing the onboard Tensor Cores to enable neural shaders. This will allow developers to create AI-powered visualization, optimal path-tracing algorithms, and even generate realistic images and objects much more effectively, paving the way for more realistic and immersive graphics experiences. Microsoft is working with partners such as AMD, Intel, NVIDIA, and Qualcomm to integrate cooperative vector support into the DirectX ecosystem, allowing AI-accelerated graphical computation to flow much more seamlessly.

Microsoft DirectX embraces neural rendering for next-gen graphics

Forward-looking: Microsoft originally introduced DirectX alongside Windows 95 as an incentive to drive game developers to support the new GUI-based operating system. The company has never stopped improving the collection of application programming interfaces since 1994, and is currently working to integrate the latest AI technologies. Microsoft recently announced what could be the next major development in the history of DirectX. The High-Level Shader Language (HLSL) team is currently working with major GPU and SoC manufacturers to bring support for neural rendering technology in the company's APIs for 3D graphics, which Microsoft described as a significant evolution in what's possible with real-time graphics. Redmond defines neural rendering as a suite of techniques capable of leveraging artificial intelligence, machine learning algorithms, and models to evolve traditional graphics pipelines. Cooperative vectors are the core element of these new neural rendering methods, and they should soon become part of the DirectX API suite for cross-platform game development. Cooperative vectors are useful for accelerating AI workloads for real-time rendering, which in turn will improve the performance of neural rendering techniques. Cooperative vectors optimize the matrix-vector operations that are usually required in large quantities for AI training, fine-tuning, and inferencing, Microsoft explained. The new tech can also make AI tasks run during different stages of the shading process, so a smaller neural network can run in a pixel shader process without needing the entire GPU's computational power. Microsoft promises a seamless integration of neural graphics rendering in DirectX applications, with access to hardware-based AI accelerators on multiple platforms. The HLSL team is working on cooperative vector support in DirectX with AMD, Intel, Nvidia, and Qualcomm, which should provide enough cross-platform compatibility for the new solution. The most significant results will likely come to Xbox and PC platforms first and foremost. The HLSL technology is a proprietary shading language designed to improve shader adoption in the latest versions of the DirectX APIs. Microsoft praised the cross-vendor support for cooperative vectors in the DirectX ecosystem. The company also said that the new neural rendering techniques will unlock the power of Tensor Cores with neural shading available in the recently introduced Nvidia Blackwell GeForce GPUs. Nvidia explained that neural rendering will leverage small neural networks to greatly improve gaming graphics, though you will likely need to purchase a GeForce RTX 50 GPU to access this next-gen tech.

DirectX is bringing a new paradigm to PC gaming with neural rendering

Microsoft has announced that neural rendering capabilities are coming to DirectX soon. Cooperative vector support, as it's called, will lead to "cross-platform enablement of neural rendering techniques," according to Microsoft, and it will usher in "a new paradigm in 3D graphics programming." It sounds buzzy, but that's not without reason. This past week, Nvidia announced its new range of RTX 50-series graphics cards, and along with them, it revealed a slate of neural rendering features. Neural shaders, as Nvidia calls them, allow developers to execute small neural networks from shader code, running them on the dedicated AI hardware available on Nvidia, AMD, Intel, and Qualcomm GPUs. Microsoft is saying that it will enable these features on all GPUs, not just those sold by Nvidia, through the DirectX API. Recommended Videos Microsoft is doing so through cooperative vector support, which it says "directly improves the performance of neural rendering techniques." It enables matrix multiplication to be run directly from shader code -- the programs that your GPU executes -- allowing neural networks to function regardless of your GPU brand. At this point, all major GPU brands have dedicated AI hardware available, and cooperative vectors will allow developers to tap into that hardware through shader code. Get your weekly teardown of the tech behind PC gaming ReSpec Subscribe Check your inbox! Privacy Policy Cross-vendor support for neural shaders is a big deal. In generations past, Nvidia maintained a closed system of middleware dubbed GameWorks that would only work on Nvidia graphics cards. The suite included features like PhysX in games like Batman: Arkham City and Mirror's Edge, as well as HairWorks in games like The Witcher 3 and Final Fantasy XV. With broad neural rendering support through DirectX, it will hopefully encourage developers to include neural shaders without fear of locking out certain players. Nvidia has already demonstrated the capabilities of neural rendering with features such as the Neural Radiance Cache, which uses a neural network to infer light bounces in a path-traced scene, enhancing both the visual quality and performance of games that feature path tracing. Although the DirectX announcement is recent, we won't see neural rendering features in games for quite some time. Nvidia and Microsoft are just now laying the foundation for these new rendering techniques, so it could be several years before we see a game running small neural networks through shader code. The potential applications are vast, though, and these techniques could bring about a new wave of rendering capabilities now that they'll be supported on GPUs from all vendors.