Nvidia adds native Python support to CUDA

Summary

In 2024, Python became the most popular programming language in the world — overtaking JavaScript — according to GitHub’s 2024 open source survey. For years, NVIDIA’s CUDA software toolkit didn’t have native Python support. But that’s now changed. At GTC, NVIDIA announced native support and full integration of Python in its CUDA toolkit. Developers will be able to use Python for direct execution of algorithmic-style computing on GPUs. “We’ve been working hard to bring accelerated Python, first class, into the CUDA stack,” said Stephen Jones, CUDA architect, during a presentation at the recent GTC conference. For programmers, the implications are massive. CUDA was born from C and C++, and now coders don’t need knowledge of those programming languages to use the toolkit. “Python for CUDA should not look like C. It should look like Python,” Jones said. “Python CUDA is not just C translated into Python syntax.” — Stephen Jones, CUDA architect Coders can use natural Python interfaces and the scripting model of calling functions and libraries to create AI programs for execution on NVIDIA GPUs. “Python CUDA is not just C translated into Python syntax. It’s got to be something which is natural to a Python developer,” Jones said. Native Python Opens New Doors NVIDIA’s native support for Python on CUDA opens the developer toolkit to millions of developers. CUDA previously required developers to know C++ or Fortran. The programming kit had some Python tooling, but it wasn’t natively supported. The number of CUDA users was only 4 million in 2023, up from 2 million in 2020, according to The Futurum Group. But Python is the fastest-growing language in the world. NVIDIA will get access to millions of Python coders — especially in developing countries such as India and Brazil, where coders make fervent contributions to open source projects. Python support will also make NVIDIA’s infrastructure ready to use in emerging markets. A bulk of NVIDIA GPUs are in the U.S. and Europe, but t...