# The gem5 Simulator: Version 20.0+

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2007.03152 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2007.03152/

## Key facts

- Cited by 14 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 7 Jul 2020.

## Built on by (most cited first, 14 of 14)

- [ArchGym: An Open-Source Gymnasium for Machine Learning Assisted Architecture Design](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2306.08888/) (2023)
- [PolyThrottle: Energy-efficient Neural Network Inference on Edge Devices](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2310.19991/) (2023)
- [A Digital Twin Framework for Liquid-cooled Supercomputers as Demonstrated at Exascale](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2410.05133/) (2024)
- [AI Benchmark Democratization and Carpentry](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2512.11588/) (2025)
- [Tail-Likelihood Reinforcement Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2609.02987/) (2026)
- [Accelerator-driven Data Arrangement to Minimize Transformers Run-time on Multi-core Architectures](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2312.13000/) (2023)
- [FullPack: Full Vector Utilization for Sub-Byte Quantized Inference on General Purpose CPUs](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2211.06982/) (2022)
- [Accelerating Computer Architecture Simulation through Machine Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2402.18746/) (2024)
- [Full-stack evaluation of Machine Learning inference workloads for RISC-V systems](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2405.15380/) (2024)
- [Ember: A Compiler for Efficient Embedding Operations on Decoupled Access-Execute Architectures](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2504.09870/) (2025)
- [OpenDPDv2: A Unified Learning and Optimization Framework for Neural Network Digital Predistortion](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2507.06849/) (2025)
- [Vectorized FlashAttention with Low-cost Exponential Computation in RISC-V Vector Processors](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2510.06834/) (2025)
- [OpenURMA: A Clean-Room Open Implementation of the Unified Bus Protocol](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2605.28717/) (2026)
- [PerfReasoning: How Well Do LLMs Reason on Hardware Performance?](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2609.04476/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

The open-source and community-supported gem5 simulator is one of the most popular tools for computer architecture research. This simulation infrastructure allows researchers to model modern computer hardware at the cycle level, and it has enough fidelity to boot unmodified Linux-based operating systems and run full applications for multiple architectures including x86, Arm, and RISC-V. The gem5 simulator has been under active development over the last nine years since the original gem5 release. In this time, there have been over 7500 commits to the codebase from over 250 unique contributors which have improved the simulator by adding new features, fixing bugs, and increasing the code quality. In this paper, we give and overview of gem5's usage and features, describe the current state of the gem5 simulator, and enumerate the major changes since the initial release of gem5. We also discuss how the gem5 simulator has transitioned to a formal governance model to enable continued improvement and community support for the next 20 years of computer architecture research.