Brain-inspired AI for Edge Intelligence: a systematic review
This is an incremental survey paper targeting researchers and engineers working on energy-efficient AI deployment at the edge.
This systematic review examines the 'Deployment Paradox' in Spiking Neural Networks (SNNs) for edge intelligence, where theoretical energy gains are undermined by hardware inefficiencies, and proposes a roadmap including a standardized Neuromorphic OS to address these challenges.
While Spiking Neural Networks (SNNs) promise to circumvent the severe Size, Weight, and Power (SWaP) constraints of edge intelligence, the field currently faces a "Deployment Paradox" where theoretical energy gains are frequently negated by the inefficiencies of mapping asynchronous, event-driven dynamics onto traditional von Neumann substrates. Transcending the reductionism of algorithm-only reviews, this survey adopts a rigorous system-level hardware-software co-design perspective to examine the 2020-2025 trajectory, specifically targeting the "last mile" technologies - from quantization methodologies to hybrid architectures - that translate biological plausibility into silicon reality. We critically dissect the interplay between training complexity (the dichotomy of direct learning vs. conversion), the "memory wall" bottlenecking stateful neuronal updates, and the critical software gap in neuromorphic compilation toolchains. Finally, we envision a roadmap to reconcile the fundamental "Sync-Async Mismatch," proposing the development of a standardized Neuromorphic OS as the foundational layer for realizing a ubiquitous, energy-autonomous Green Cognitive Substrate.