The Raspberry Pi AI Camera costs just $70 and is packed with visual processing trickery

Cheap-and-cheerful computer maker Raspberry Pi has released an AI Camera module, developed in conjunction with Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation (SSS).

The Raspberry Pi AI Camera is compatible with Raspberry Pi’s range of single-board computers – low-cost devices designed to encourage coding for students and hobbyists that typically can be picked up for a handful of dollars. The Raspberry Pi Zero, for example, launched at around $5 / £4 / AU$10, and in the UK one magazine even gave away a free Raspberry Pi Zero computer as a covermount!

The AI Camera is powered by SSS’s IMX500 intelligent vision sensor, which essentially combines a camera module and image processor, and thus is capable of on-chip AI image processing. This enables Raspberry Pi enthusiasts to easily and efficiently develop AI applications that process visual data, all the while removing the workload from the main Raspberry Pi motherboard.

The new AI Camera is compatible with all Raspberry Pi single-board computers, including the latest Raspberry Pi 5, enabling users to develop solutions with familiar hardware and software.

Because images consist of a massive amount of data, traditional AI imaging solutions typically require a graphics processing unit (GPU), an accelerator, and a whole host of other components and circuitry, in addition to a camera itself.

However, the new Raspberry Pi AI Camera is equipped with the IMX500 intelligent vision sensor, which handles all the AI processing. See the video below for the sort of AI applications that can be created with just a Raspberry Pi and an AI Camera…

The Raspberry Pi AI Camera combines a 12.3 effective megapixel IMX500 intelligent vision sensor with a powerful neural network accelerator, and can output full-size 4056 x 3040 resolution images at at 10fps or lower-res 2028 x 1520 video at 40fps. It has a 76° field of view with manual / mechanical adjustable focus, and works with all Raspberry Pi models using only Raspberry Pi standard camera connector cable.

“AI-based image processing is becoming an attractive tool for developers around the world,” said Eben Upton, CEO, Raspberry Pi Ltd.

“Together with our longstanding image sensor partner Sony Semiconductor Solutions, we have developed the Raspberry Pi AI Camera, incorporating Sony’s image sensor expertise. We look forward to seeing what our community members are able to achieve using the power of the Raspberry Pi AI Camera.”

The Raspberry Pi AI Camera costs $70 / £63 / AU$123

Read more: What is an AI-powered camera?