speculative execution

Concept

Speculative execution is identified in the evidence as a high-performance processor microarchitecture technique. In RISC-V processor development, it is discussed alongside out-of-order execution as a source of added verification complexity and possible security exposure, including vulnerabilities such as Spectre and Meltdown.

First seen 5/27/2026

Last seen 8/11/2026

Evidence 22 chunks

Wiki v1

WIKI

Overview

Speculative execution is a processor microarchitecture technique associated with improving performance. In the provided evidence, it is listed with out-of-order execution as a common technique used for higher performance in CPU designs. [Speculative execution as performance technique]

Relevance to RISC-V microarchitecture

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NEIGHBORHOOD

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RELATIONSHIPS

21 connections

Transient Execution Attack ← uses 100% 3e

Transient execution attacks exploit speculative execution to create a transient window for information leakage.

An integrated concurrency and core-ISA architectural envelope definition, and test oracle, for IBM POWER multiprocessors ← uses 100% 2e

The paper models speculative execution as a key feature.

BRVer ← evaluates 95% 2e

BRVer targets branch mechanisms related to speculative execution.

superscalar processor part of → 85% 2e

Speculative execution is an advanced feature of superscalar processors.

An Approach to Test Programs Generation for Microprocessors Based on Pipeline Hazards Templates ← uses 90% 1e

The paper mentions speculative execution as a mechanism verified by the approach.

control hazards part of → 80% 1e

Speculative execution is related to control hazard handling in branch prediction.

Suresh Chips and Semiconductor ← uses 92% 1e

Suresh Chips and Semiconductor implements speculative execution with precise trap handling.

riscv_core RTL Module ← implements 88% 1e

The riscv_core RTL module implements speculative execution with precise trap handling.

microarchitectural state space exploration ← mentions 80% 1e

Microarchitectural state space exploration is needed for complex CPUs with speculative execution.

SNAP ← uses 85% 1e

SNAP's BUQ allows the load part of bitmap updates to proceed speculatively, leveraging out-of-order/speculative execution.

Bitmap Update Queue ← uses 90% 1e

The BUQ load operation is allowed to proceed speculatively to avoid stalling the CPU pipeline.

RISC-V BOOM ← implements 85% 1e

Modern CPU architectures including BOOM adopt speculative execution for performance.

CPU Pipeline part of → 100% 1e

Speculative execution is a feature of the CPU pipeline that enables prediction-based execution.

SMoTherSpectre ← uses 93% 1e

SMoTherSpectre exploits contention during speculative execution to measure timing differences.

weakly consistent multiprocessor part of → 95% 1e

Speculative execution is a key feature of weakly consistent multiprocessors.

MP+sync+ctrl litmus test ← uses 100% 1e

The MP+sync+ctrl test demonstrates observable speculative execution.

Spectre mentions → 93% 1e

Speculative execution exposes potential security vulnerabilities such as Spectre.

PPOCA litmus test ← uses 90% 1e

The PPOCA test shows that speculative write forwarding is observable.

Meltdown mentions → 93% 1e

Speculative execution exposes potential security vulnerabilities such as Meltdown.

RISC-V ← mentions 88% 1e

RISC-V implementations using speculative execution increase complexity and security risks.

openC910 RTL mentions → 85% 1e

The openC910 features speculative execution.

LINKED ENTITIES

3 links

Spectre MENTIONS Extracted graph relationship

Meltdown MENTIONS Extracted graph relationship

RISC-V MENTIONS Extracted graph relationship

CITATIONS

5 sources

5 citations — click to expand

[1] Speculative execution as performance technique RISC-V Microarchitecture Verification Approaches

[2] RISC-V verification context RISC-V Microarchitecture Verification Approaches

[3] Speculative execution increases verification complexity RISC-V Microarchitecture Verification Approaches

[4] Processor verification requires more than simulation RISC-V Microarchitecture Verification Approaches

[5] Speculative execution security vulnerabilities RISC-V Microarchitecture Verification Approaches