AMD expanded its Artificial Intelligence hardware push with new products for data centers, laptops, and software development. The company introduced updates to its Instinct accelerator line for large language model training and inferencing, added a new accelerated processing unit for data centers, launched Ryzen 8040 mobile processors with built-in Ryzen Artificial Intelligence features, and made its Ryzen Artificial Intelligence developer tools generally available.
Among the key announcements was the Instinct MI300X, which AMD positioned as a rival to Nvidia’s H100 for large language model workloads. AMD claims Instinct MI300X offers 1.6 times better performance running large language models like Llama 2 or Bloom compared to Nvidia’s flagship GPU line. Microsoft is using AMD hardware in its virtual machine portfolio, and the new Azure ND MI300x v5 Virtual Machines are optimized for Artificial Intelligence workloads. First showcased in November, they’re now in preview. Oracle is also adding the new Instinct line to its high-performance accelerated computing instances for Artificial Intelligence.
AMD also unveiled the MI300A Accelerated Processing Unit, combining a CPU and a GPU on a single chip. The company claims it is the world’s first APU for high-performance computing and Artificial Intelligence for data centers. The MI300A APUs are meant to power faster Artificial Intelligence training and offer 30 times more energy efficiency in server processors for Artificial Intelligence training, according to AMD.
For laptops, AMD introduced Ryzen 8040 mobile processors at its Advancing Artificial Intelligence event. The chips include Ryzen Artificial Intelligence to optimize workloads on laptops and improve battery life through new power management features. AMD said the increased Artificial Intelligence capabilities of the 8040 series will handle larger models and support the next phase of user experiences. The processors are Windows 11-ready and can access out-of-the-box Artificial Intelligence with Windows Studio Effects Pack for device camera management.
AMD also said the new mobile line will improve video editing and gaming speeds by 77% compared with rival hardware. The chips are set to power laptops in 2024 from Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, Lenovo and Razer. Alongside the hardware, AMD said its Ryzen Artificial Intelligence developer tools, which let developers run machine learning models on AMD devices, are now generally available, with a focus on fast and private deployment on Ryzen-powered laptops.