OpenCL™ (Open Computing Language) is a low-level API for heterogeneous computing that runs on CUDA architecture GPUs. Using OpenCL, developers can write compute kernels using a C-like programming language to harness the massive parallel computing power of NVIDIA GPU’s to create compelling computing applications. As the OpenCL standard matures and is supported on processors from other vendors, NVIDIA will continue to provide the drivers, tools and training resources developers need to create GPU accelerated applications.

In partnership with NVIDIA, OpenCL was submitted to the Khronos Group by Apple in the summer of 2008 with the goal of forging a cross platform environment for general purpose computing on GPUs. NVIDIA has chaired the industry working group that defines the OpenCL standard since its inception and shipped the world’s first conformant GPU implementation of OpenCL for both Windows and Linux in June 2009.

NVIDIA has been delivering OpenCL support in end-user production drivers since October 2009, supporting OpenCL on all 300,000,000+ CUDA architecture GPUs shipped since 2006. OpenCL v1.1 support is included in publicly available NVIDIA drivers version 280.13 or later on the driver download page

• For OpenCL v1.1 support on Windows Server, use the Windows 7 drivers
• Windows XP drivers with OpenCL v1.1support are available for GeForce desktop products only

NVIDIA also provides powerful performance analysis tools for OpenCL developers, including NVIDIA Parallel Nsight for Visual Studio and NVIDIA Visual Profiler for Linux and MacOS.

On the same day Khronos Group announced the new OpenCL v1.1 specification update (June 14th, 2010), NVIDIA released OpenCL v1.1 pre-release drivers and SDK code samples to all GPU Computing registered developers.  Log in or apply for an account to download latest NVIDIA Drivers and Toolkits.

NVIDIA enthusiastically supports all languages and API’s that enable developers to access the parallel processing power of the GPU. NVIDIA has a long history of embracing and supporting standards, since a wide range of options improves the number and scope of applications that can exploit parallel computing on the GPU. With C/C++ and Fortran language support along with API’s such as OpenCL and Microsoft DirectCompute available today, GPU computing is now mainstream. NVIDIA is the only company to offer this breadth of open and standard language solutions for the GPU.

See a history of NVIDIA's contributions and leadership in supporting OpenCL

Find OpenCL technical session recordings and presentations in our GTC 2010 Proceedings 

NVIDIA’s Industry-leading support for OpenCL:

2011

• July – NVIDIA releases updated R280 drivers that incorporate OpenCL v1.1 support previously available to registered developers

2010

• November – NVIDIA releases updated Visual Profiler and new cuda-memcheck support for OpenCL applications
• July – Khronos Group certifies NVIDIA’s OpenCL 1.1 as industry first conformant implementation
• June – NVIDIA releases updated Visual Profiler and new SDK code samples for OpenCL developers
• June – NVIDIA releases R256 OpenCL 1.1 conformance candidate to thousands of developers
• April - NVIDIA releases Parallel Nsight 1.0 with support for  OpenCL 1.0 API Trace
• March – NVIDIA releases Visual Profiler 3.0 with integrated support for both OpenCL and CUDA C/C++ applications on Fermi architecture GPUs
• March – NVIDIA releases updated R195 drivers with the Khronos-approved ICD, enabling applications to use OpenCL on NVIDIA GPUs and other vendors’ processors at the same time
• January – NVIDIA releases updated R195 drivers, supporting developer-requested OpenCL extensions for Direct3D9/10/11 buffer sharing and loop unrolling
• January – Khronos Group ratifies the ICD specification contributed by NVIDIA, enabling applications to use multiple OpenCL implementations concurrently

2009

• November – NVIDIA releases R195 drivers with support for optional features in the OpenCL v1.0 specification such as double precision math operations and OpenGL buffer sharing
• October – NVIDIA hosts the GPU Technology Conference, providing OpenCL training for an additional 500+ developers
• September – NVIDIA completes OpenCL training for over 1000 developers via free webinars
• September – NVIDIA begins shipping OpenCL 1.0 conformant support in all end user (public) driver packages for Windows and Linux
• September - NVIDIA releases the OpenCL Visual Profiler, the industry’s first hardware performance profiling tool for OpenCL applications
• July – NVIDIA hosts first “Introduction to GPU Computing and OpenCL” and “Best Practices for OpenCL Programming, Advanced” webinars for developers
• July – NVIDIA releases the NVIDIA OpenCL Best Practices Guide, packed with optimization techniques and guidelines for achieving fast, accurate results with OpenCL
• July – NVIDIA contributes source code and specification for an Installable Client Driver (ICD) to the Khronos OpenCL Working Group, with the goal of enabling applications to use multiple OpenCL implementations concurrently on GPUs, CPUs and other types of processors
• June – NVIDIA releases industry first OpenCL 1.0 conformant drivers and developer SDK
• April – NVIDIA releases industry first OpenCL 1.0 GPU drivers for Windows and Linux, accompanied by the 100+ page NVIDIA OpenCL Programming Guide, an OpenCL JumpStart Guide showing developers how to port existing code from CUDA C to OpenCL, and OpenCL developer forums

2008

• December – NVIDIA shows off the world's first OpenCL GPU demonstration, running on an NVIDIA laptop GPU at SIGGRAPH Asia
• June – Apple submits OpenCL proposal to Khronos Group; NVIDIA volunteers to chair the OpenCL Working Group is formed

2007

• December – NVIDIA Tesla product wins PC Magazine Technical Excellence Award
• June – NVIDIA launches first Tesla C870, the first GPU designed for High Performance Computing
• May - NVIDIA releases first CUDA architecture GPUs capable of running OpenCL in laptops & workstations

2006

• November - NVIDIA released first CUDA architecture GPU capable of running OpenCL

OpenCL is a trademark of Apple Inc., used under license by Khronos.