Wafer is a new VS Code extension designed to streamline GPU performance engineering by integrating several tools directly into the development environment. It aims to simplify the process of developing, profiling, and optimizing GPU kernels, which are crucial for improving training and inference speeds in deep learning applications. Traditionally, this workflow involves using multiple fragmented tools and tabs, but Wafer consolidates these functionalities, allowing developers to work more efficiently within a single interface. The extension offers several key features to enhance the development experience. It integrates Nsight Compute directly into the editor, enabling users to run performance analysis and view results alongside their code. Additionally, Wafer includes a CUDA compiler explorer that allows developers to inspect PTX and SASS code mapped back to their source, facilitating quicker iteration on kernel changes. Furthermore, a GPU documentation search feature is embedded within the editor, providing detailed optimization guidance and context to assist developers in making informed decisions. Wafer is particularly beneficial for those involved in training and inference performance work, as it consolidates essential tools and resources into the familiar environment of VS Code. By reducing the need to switch between different applications and tabs, Wafer enhances productivity and allows developers to focus on optimizing their GPU kernels more effectively. This matters because improving GPU performance can significantly impact the efficiency and speed of deep learning models, leading to faster and more cost-effective AI solutions.
A notable performance discrepancy has been observed between llama.cpp and Ollama in terms of code generation throughput when running the Qwen-3 Coder 32B model locally. The analysis reveals that llama.cpp achieves approximately 70% higher throughput compared to Ollama, despite both using the same model weights and hardware. Potential reasons for this difference include variations in CUDA kernels, attention implementations, context or batching defaults, scheduler or multi-GPU utilization, and overhead from Ollama's runtime or API layer. Understanding these differences is crucial for optimizing performance in machine learning applications. This matters because optimizing code generation throughput can significantly impact computational efficiency and resource utilization in AI model deployment.