ASRock Technology, a global leader in motherboard manufacturing, today announced the release of the latest AGESA beta BIOS for AM5 motherboards, enabling support for next-generation Ryzen processors. ASRock AM5 motherboard lineup can now support next-generation AMD Ryzen processors with the installation of the latest new AGESA 1.1.7.0 beta BIOS, significantly improving processor compatibility and providing users of ASRock AM5 motherboards with enhanced Ryzen processor support.

Users can easily update to the latest AGESA 1.1.7.0 beta BIOS through ASRock official website or using features like BIOS Flashback and Instant Flash. ASRock recommends that users update to the latest BIOS version as soon as possible to achieve better compatibility and system performance. The official version is expected to be released later, so please stay tuned to the ASRock official website for the latest updates.

AMD's next-generation Ryzen 9000 "Strix Point" mobile processor, which succeeds the current Ryzen 8040 "Hawk Point" and Ryzen 7040 "Phoenix," is confirmed to feature a CPU core-configuration of 12-core/24-thread, according to a specs-leak by HKEPC citing sources among notebook OEMs. It appears like Computex 2024 will be big for AMD, with the company preparing next-gen processor announcements across the desktop and notebook lines. Both the "Strix Point" mobile processor and "Granite Ridge" desktop processor debut the company's next "Zen 5" microarchitecture.

Perhaps the biggest takeaway from "Zen 5" is that AMD has increased the number of CPU cores per CCX from 8 in "Zen 3" and "Zen 4," to 12 in "Zen 5." While this doesn't affect the core-counts of its CCD chiplets (which are still expected to be 8-core), the "Strix Point" processor appears to use one giant CCX with 12 cores. Each of the "Zen 5" cores has a 1 MB dedicated L2 cache, while the 12 cores share a 24 MB L3 cache. The 12-core/24-thread CPU, besides the generational IPC gains introduced by "Zen 5," marks a 50% increase in CPU muscle over "Hawk Point." It's not just the CPU complex, even the iGPU sees a hardware update.

BIOSTAR, a leading manufacturer of motherboards, graphics cards, and storage devices, today is excited to announce a brand-new BIOS update designed for its AMD AM5 series motherboards, incorporating the latest AGESA PI 1.1.7.0 Patch A architecture. This update is aimed at the imminent release of AMD's next-generation CPUs, ensuring that BIOSTAR motherboards are primed to unleash the full potential of these cutting-edge processors. With a strong focus on future-ready performance, this BIOS update will be available to download soon and is ready to redefine computing power and performance with the latest AMD processors. BIOSTAR invites users to stay tuned to its official website for the BIOS release and future updates.

AMD is readying a new line of EPYC branded server processors in the Socket AM5 package, VideoCardz reports. The new processor lineup is being built to target two distinct classes of customers—small business servers, and data-centers selling small-size dedicated servers that were otherwise having to offer Ryzen chips. Intel currently has the Xeon E-2400 series "Raptor Lake-E" processors in the Socket LGA1700 package to target these exact kinds of customers. The EPYC 4004 series will be based on the same "Raphael" package as the Ryzen 7000 series, and will be a step up from the Ryzen PRO 7000 series. What sets the Ryzen PRO 7000 apart from the EPYC 4004 series are the target markets. The Ryzen PRO series target commercial desktops. Perhaps the biggest differentiator between EPYC 4004 and Ryzen PRO 7000 series is the support and warranty AMD provides to its server processors.

The "Raphael" package gives the EPYC 4004 series CPU core counts ranging between 6 and 16. These CPU cores are based on the "Zen 4" microarchitecture. The memory controllers in the I/O die will probably be reconfigured to support server memory densities, besides ECC support like on the Ryzen PRO 7000 series. There's even talk of variants with 3D V-cache, although it remains to be seen if the 12-core and 16-core variants are similar to the 7900X3D and 7950X3D, where only one of the two CCDs has 3D V-cache; or if they're the chip we all dreamed about—a "Raphael" with both CCDs featuring 3D V-cache. There are already Socket AM5 motherboards by companies such as Advantech, which are server-grade, with server-relevant I/O, like the one pictured below, and so the ecosystem for EPYC 4004 series already exists, along with upgrade headroom for future generations.

GIGABYTE TECHNOLOGY Co. Ltd, a leading manufacturer of motherboards, graphics cards, and hardware solutions, released the latest AGESA 1.1.7.0 beta bios for the coming AMD Ryzen 9000 series processors boot-up support on GIGABYTE AM5 X670, B650, A620 motherboards, and for present Ryzen 7000 and 8000 series processors as well.⁠ The AGESA 1.1.7.0 beta BIOS is now ready on the GIGABYTE official website, and the formal release will be in mid-May. Users can easily update the BIOS using GIGABYTE's ＠BIOS, Q-Flash, or Q-Flash Plus technology. For more update, please pay close attention to the official GIGABYTE website.

AMD is reportedly planning to launch the Ryzen 7 8700F and Ryzen 5 8400F Socket AM5 desktop processors for a global launch, in the retail channel, as boxed processors. The two chips had launched earlier this month in the Chinese retail market. The 8700F reportedly comes with an OPN of 100-100001590BOX, while the 8400F is marked 100-100001591BOX. The "F" in both SKUs denotes a lack of integrated graphics. The Ryzen 7 8700F is an 8-core/16-thread processor based on the 4 nm "Hawk Point" silicon, while the 8400F is a 6-core/12-thread processor based on "Phoenix 2," which offers two "Zen 4" cores that run at higher clock speeds, and four "Zen 4c" cores that run at lower speeds.

The lack of an iGPU isn't the only thing differentiating the 8700F from the 8700G, the new chip even comes with slightly lower CPU clock speeds—100 MHz lower base and maximum boost frequencies. The 8700F CPU runs at a base frequency of 4.10 GHz, with 5.00 GHz maximum boost, when compared to the 4.20/5.10 GHz speeds of the 8700G. The 8400F, on the other hand, runs at 4.20 GHz base frequency, and a 4.70 GHz maximum boost frequency that applies to at least its two "Zen 4" cores; its four "Zen 4c" cores run at lower frequencies. There is no word on pricing. One reason you could want an 8700F over something like a 7700 would be its appetite for memory overclocking, if you can overlook the lack of integrated graphics, a smaller L3 cache, and most importantly, the lack of PCIe Gen 5, and four fewer PCIe lanes.

Today, we have the latest round of leaks that suggest that AMD's upcoming RDNA 4 graphics cards, codenamed the "RX 8000-series," might continue to rely on GDDR6 memory modules. According to Kepler on X, the next-generation GPUs from AMD are expected to feature 18 Gbps GDDR6 memory, marking the fourth consecutive RDNA architecture to employ this memory standard. While GDDR6 may not offer the same bandwidth capabilities as the newer GDDR7 standard, this decision does not necessarily imply that RDNA 4 GPUs will be slow performers. AMD's choice to stick with GDDR6 is likely driven by factors such as meeting specific memory bandwidth requirements and cost optimization for PCB designs. However, if the rumor of 18 Gbps GDDR6 memory proves accurate, it would represent a slight step back from the 18-20 Gbps GDDR6 memory used in AMD's current RDNA 3 offerings, such as the RX 7900 XT and RX 7900 XTX GPUs.

AMD's first generation RDNA used GDDR6 with 12-14 Gbps speeds, RDNA 2 came with GDDR6 at 14-18 Gbps, and the current RDNA 3 used 18-20 Gbps GDDR6. Without an increment in memory generation, speeds should stay the same at 18 Gbps. However, it is crucial to remember that leaks should be treated with skepticism, as AMD's final memory choices for RDNA 4 could change before the official launch. The decision to use GDDR6 versus GDDR7 could have significant implications in the upcoming battle between AMD, NVIDIA, and Intel's next-generation GPU architectures. If AMD indeed opts for GDDR6 while NVIDIA pivots to GDDR7 for its "Blackwell" GPUs, it could create a disparity in memory bandwidth performance between the competing products. All three major GPU manufacturers—AMD, NVIDIA, and Intel with its "Battlemage" architecture—are expected to unveil their next-generation offerings in the fall of this year. As we approach these highly anticipated releases, more concrete details on specifications and performance capabilities will emerge, providing a clearer picture of the competitive landscape.

Korean media reports that Samsung Electronics has signed a 4.134 trillion Won ($3 billion) agreement with AMD to supply 12-high HBM3E stacks. AMD uses HBM stacks in its AI and HPC accelerators based on its CDNA architecture. This deal is significant, as it gives analysts some idea of the kind of volumes of AI GPUs AMD is preparing to push into the market, if they know what percent of an AI GPU's bill of materials is made up by memory stacks. AMD has probably negotiated a good price for Samsung's HBM3E 12H stacks, given that rival NVIDIA almost exclusively uses HBM3E made by SK Hynix.

The AI GPU market is expected to heat up with the ramp of NVIDIA's "Hopper" H200 series, the advent of "Blackwell," AMD's MI350X CDNA3, and Intel's Gaudi 3 generative AI accelerator. Samsung debuted its HBM3E 12H memory in February 2024. Each stack features 12 layers, a 50% increase over the first generation of HBM3E, and offers a density of 36 GB per stack. An AMD CDNA3 chip with 8 such stacks would have 288 GB of memory on package. AMD is expected to launch the MI350X in the second half of 2024. The star attraction with this chip is its refreshed GPU tiles built on the TSMC 4 nm EUV foundry node. This seems like the ideal product for AMD to debut HBM3E 12H on.

Velocity Micro, the premier builder of award-winning enthusiast desktops, laptops, high performance computing solutions, and professional workstations announces the immediate availability of a line of Linux powered PCs preinstalled with Ubuntu 22.04. Systems are designed for a wide range of customers and use cases such as individual enthusiasts, CAD and content creation professionals, machine learning/AI, and enterprise, to bring the flexibility and security of an open source OS platform into the mainstream. Desktops start at $1,429 with Linux laptops starting at $1,199. Shipments begin immediately.

"We've been preinstalling various flavors of Linux on custom server and workstation builds for years, which has really afforded us the opportunity to get hands-on to learn the OS," said Randy Copeland, President and CEO of Velocity Micro. "We're excited to bring what we've learned to market and introduce our customers to Ubuntu Linux."

Enthusiasts on the ChipHell forum scored an alleged image of AMD's upcoming "Strix Halo" mobile processor, and set out to create some highly plausible schematic slides. These are speculative. While "Strix Point" is the mobile processor that succeeds the current "Hawk Point" and "Phoenix" processors; "Strix Halo" is in a category of its own—to offer gaming experiences comparable to discrete GPUs in the ultraportable form-factor where powerful discrete GPUs are generally not possible. "Strix Halo" also goes head on against Apple's M3 Max and M3 Pro processors powering the latest crop of MacBook Pros. It has the same advantages as a single-chip solution, as the M3 Max.

The "Strix Halo" silicon is a chiplet-based processor, although very different from "Fire Range". The "Fire Range" processor is essentially a BGA version of the desktop "Granite Ridge" processor—it's the same combination of one or two "Zen 5" CCDs that talk to a client I/O die, and is meant for performance-thru-enthusiast segment notebooks. "Strix Halo," on the other hand, use the same one or two "Zen 5" CCDs, but with a large SoC die featuring an oversized iGPU, and 256-bit LPDDR5X memory controllers not found on the cIOD. This is key to what AMD is trying to achieve—CPU and graphics performance in the league of the M3 Pro and M3 Max at comparable PCB and power footprints.

Nixxes Software has released official PC system requirements for Ghost of Tsushima: Director's Cut that will officially launch on May 16th. In addition, the game will be the first PlayStation title on PC that will use the PlayStation overlay. The game will also feature support for NVIDIA DLSS 3, AMD FSR 3 and Intel XeSS, as well as support for NVIDIA DLAA and AMD FSR 3 Native AA.

Ghost of Tsushima: Director's Cut on PC will feature the full game, the Iki Island expansion, and the cooperative online multiplayer Legends mode. It will also support cross-play, allowing games on PC to team up with PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 consoles. Of course, you'll still need to sign in to PlayStation Network account for Legends mode. In addition, this will be the first game on the PC to use the new PlayStation overlay, allowing users on PC to access Friends list, Trophies, Settings, and Profile.

Lenovo is putting finishing touches on the Yoga Slim 7 14 2024, one of the first non-reference laptop to feature Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon X processor. Leaked images circulating on X (formerly Twitter) reveal a sleek and stylish design, with a 14-inch or 14.5-inch display encased in a slim and portable form factor. Qualcomm has previously showcased eye-catching demo reference systems in a striking red color scheme, but Lenovo's Yoga Slim 7 14 2024 marks the first time a significant laptop manufacturer with actual product images incorporating the Snapdragon X chip. The Yoga Slim 7 14 2024 is part of Lenovo's popular Slim laptop lineup, including models powered by Intel and AMD processors. The latest "Gen 8" iteration featured options for AMD Ryzen 7040 series and Intel 13th Gen Core i and Core Ultra series CPUs.

One notable addition to the Snapdragon X-powered model is the inclusion of a dedicated Microsoft Copilot button. Qualcomm has heavily touted the Snapdragon X's Neural Processing Unit (NPU) performance and its ability to directly accelerate various AI and machine learning algorithms on the device. There have been a few comparison points between Meteor Lake with Intel's NPU and Snapdragon X Elite with Qualcomm's NPU. The chipmaker's X Elite and X Plus laptop offerings are expected to arrive soon, and there are strong indications that this may happen during the Computex trade show.Update 17:28 UTC: X user WalkingCat has posted images of Lenovo Thinkpad T14s laptop, which can be seen below.

MSI is here to announce the latest AGESA ComboPI 1.1.7.0 Patch A BIOS update for AM5 next gen CPU support on X670E, X670, B650, A620 motherboards. Users would simply need to update the BIOS to the latest version accordingly. MSI will continue to update the latest news for our users. Please follow MSI's official channels and check the product pages for the latest BIOS updates to guarantee optimal experience, heightened performance, and enhanced stability.

For more about MSI AMD 600 series motherboards, please check here.

Today, AMD announced new products that will expand its commercial mobile and desktop AI PC portfolio, delivering exceptional productivity and premium AI and connectivity experiences to business users. The new AMD Ryzen PRO 8040 Series are the most advanced x86 processors built for business laptops and mobile workstations. In addition, AMD also announced the AMD Ryzen PRO 8000 Series desktop processor, the first AI enabled desktop processor for business users, engineered to deliver cutting-edge performance with low power consumption.

With AMD Ryzen AI built into select models, AMD is further extending its AI PC leadership. By leveraging the CPU, GPU, and dedicated on-chip neural processing unit (NPU), new Ryzen AI-powered processors provide more dedicated AI processing power than previous generations, with up to 16 dedicated NPU TOPS (Trillions of Operations Per Second) and up to 39 total system TOPS. Commercial PCs equipped with new Ryzen AI-enabled processors will help transform user experience, offering next-gen performance for AI-enabled collaboration, content creation, and data and analytics workloads. With the addition of AMD PRO technologies, IT managers can unlock enterprise-grade manageability features to simplify IT operations and complete PC deployment faster across the organization, built-in security features for chip-to-cloud defense from sophisticated attacks, as well as unprecedented stability, reliability and platform longevity for enterprise software.

Lenovo has unveiled a selection of ThinkCentre desktops powered by AMD Ryzen PRO 8000 Series desktop processors with up to 16 TOPS (trillion operations per second) of integrated NPU capability dedicated to process AI workloads, including the performance focused ThinkCentre M75t Gen 5, the flexible ThinkCentre M75s Gen 5, and the compact ThinkCentre M75q Gen 5. Designed to meet the diverse needs of modern business, the ThinkCentre M75 Gen 5 family of desktops harnesses the AI capability of its component while optimizing its energy efficiency to deliver impressive results.

"The AI PC era is already here and at Lenovo we are embracing it to unlock new possibilities," said Sanjeev Menon, vice president and general manager, Worldwide Desktop Business in Intelligent Devices Group, Lenovo. "The need for businesses to integrate AI into their operations continues to grow and our ThinkCentre M75 family of desktops, with a strong and stable power supply, the ability to upgrade components when needed, and the space to expand memory and optimize thermal management are the ideal options to enhance productivity with AI without heavy investments. Lenovo and AMD have a long-standing partnership focused on delivering value to our customers and we know users will be delighted by the leap in performance of our new desktops."

Minisforum has unveiled a game-changing device that blurs the lines between tablets and laptops: the Minisforum V3. Today, the V3 laptop has hit the Minisforum store. This innovative 3-in-1 tablet is powered by the high-performance AMD Ryzen 7 8840U processor, offering a unique blend of portability and computing power. Unlike its traditional Mini PC design, Minisforum has adopted the popular form factor of Microsoft Surface and Lenovo Yoga tablet PCs with the V3. This versatile device can be a handheld tablet, a laptop with an included magnetic attachable keyboard, or a solo kickstand. At the heart of the Minisforum V3 lies the 8-core, 16-thread Ryzen 7 8840U processor, capable of delivering exceptional performance for demanding tasks. The tablet features a stunning 14-inch 2560 x 1600 IPS screen with a 165 Hz refresh rate and 100% DCI-P3 color gamut coverage, making it an ideal choice for creative professionals and content creators.

The V3's standout feature is its advanced cooling system, which allows the Ryzen 7 8840U and onboard Radeon 780M iGPU to operate at a stable 28 watts. This ensures smooth and efficient performance even under heavy workloads, making it a reliable device for all your tasks. The tablet's screen boasts a remarkable 500 nits of brightness, and its high color gamut coverage makes it perfect for professionals who require accurate color representation. Minisforum has priced the V3 competitively at $1199 at the pre-sale offering, making it an attractive option for those seeking a powerful and versatile device that can adapt to various scenarios. This primary option includes 32 GB of RAM and 1 TB SSD for storage. For early birds, Minisforum offers a V Pen, tempered glass screen protector, and laptop sleeve as a gift. Here is the link to the Minisforum V3 store.

NVIDIA's next-gen Blackwell platform, which includes B-series GPUs and integrates NVIDIA's own Grace Arm CPU in models such as the GB200, represents a significant development. TrendForce points out that the GB200 and its predecessor, the GH200, both feature a combined CPU+GPU solution, primarily equipped with the NVIDIA Grace CPU and H200 GPU. However, the GH200 accounted for only approximately 5% of NVIDIA's high-end GPU shipments. The supply chain has high expectations for the GB200, with projections suggesting that its shipments could exceed millions of units by 2025, potentially making up nearly 40 to 50% of NVIDIA's high-end GPU market.

Although NVIDIA plans to launch products such as the GB200 and B100 in the second half of this year, upstream wafer packaging will need to adopt more complex and high-precision CoWoS-L technology, making the validation and testing process time-consuming. Additionally, more time will be required to optimize the B-series for AI server systems in aspects such as network communication and cooling performance. It is anticipated that the GB200 and B100 products will not see significant production volumes until 4Q24 or 1Q25.

MSI, a leading global server provider, is showcasing its latest GPU servers powered by AMD processors at the 2024 NAB Show, Booth #SL9137 in the Las Vegas Convention Center from April 14-17. These servers are designed to meet the evolving needs of modern creative projects in Media and Entertainment industry. "As AI continues to reshape the Media and Entertainment industry, it brings unprecedented speed and performance to tasks such as animation, visual effects, video editing, and rendering," said Danny Hsu, General Manager of Enterprise Platform Solutions. "MSI's GPU platforms empower content creators to execute every project with efficiency, speed, and uncompromising quality."

The G4101 is a 4U 4GPU server platform, purpose-built to unleash the full potential of creative professionals in the Media and Entertainment industry. It supports a single AMD EPYC 9004 Series processor equipped with a liquid cooling module, along with twelve DDR5 RDIMM slots. Additionally, it features four PCIe 5.0 x16 slots tailored for triple-slot graphic cards with coolers, ensuring increased airflow and sustained performance. With twelve front 2.5-inch U.2 NVMe/SATA drive bays, it offers high-speed and flexible storage options, catering to the diverse needs of AI workloads. The G4101 combines air flow spacing and liquid closed-loop cooling, making it the optimal thermal management solution for even the most demanding tasks.

In yet another clear sign that we could see some action from AMD on the next-gen desktop processor front this Computex, motherboard maker MSI released its first beta UEFI firmware update that packs an AGESA microcode that reportedly supports the upcoming AMD Ryzen 9000 "Granite Ridge" processors. The "7D74v1D2 beta" firmware update for the MSI MPG B650 Carbon Wi-Fi motherboard encapsulates AGESA ComboPI 1.1.7.0 patch-A, with the description that it supports a "next-gen CPU," a reference to the Ryzen 9000 "Granite Ridge."

A successor to the Ryzen 7000 Raphael, the Ryzen 9000 Granite Ridge introduces the new "Zen 5" microarchitecture to the desktop platform, with CPU core counts remaining up to 16-core/32-thread. The new microarchitecture is expected to introduce generational increase in IPC, as well as improve performance of certain exotic workloads such as AVX-512. The processors are said to be launching alongside the new AMD 800-series motherboard chipset. If AMD is using Computex as a platform to showcase these processors, it's likely we might see the first of these motherboards as well.

Over a year ago, EK Water Blocks introduced its first mainstream CPU water block, designed explicitly for delidded Intel CPUs. Since its debut, there has been a significant increase in users opting to delid their CPUs to enhance performance. Building on this trend, EK just recently released the market's first-ever All-In-One CPU cooler tailored for delidded Intel CPUs, a product that has received highly positive feedback and reception. EK, as the market leader in high-performance PC liquid cooling, is committed to constant innovation and bringing the best user experience on the market. They're reaffirming this commitment by announcing several upcoming products designed for direct die cooling. For those unfamiliar with delidding and direct die cooling, we recommend checking out EK's blog post on the topic.

First up is the highly anticipated EK Direct Die solution for Socket AM5 AMD Ryzen CPUs. Countless hours of engineering and testing were invested into these products to ensure consistent performance results and a user-friendly installation process. Unlike other solutions that require modifying an existing cold plate, this water block features a cold plate specifically designed for delidded AM5 Ryzen 7000 Series CPUs. The mounting mechanism differs from the Velocity² Direct Die water block, as it relies on standoffs at the four corners of the water block instead of the cold plate making contact with the die guard. The entire fin structure has been adjusted to direct 100% of the flow over the chiplets themselves, but more details on this topic will be available in the following days when these AMD-specific Direct Die CPU water blocks become available for order.

The RDNA 3+ graphics architecture will power integrated graphics solutions of AMD processors for the foreseeable future, a reliable source with AMD leaks says. The company is planning to debut RDNA 3+, a feature update to RDNA 3, with the upcoming Ryzen "Strix Point" mobile processor. A scaled-up version will power the "Strix Halo" processor meant for notebooks with powerful integrated graphics. Given that AMD is able to scale between a certain number of compute units for its "Strix Point" and "Strix Halo" processors, it could stick with the graphics architecture for iGPUs with its upcoming processor microarchitectures even 3 years into the future.

This isn't new for AMD, the company's Vega graphics architecture debuted in 2017, but powered the iGPUs of its "Cezanne" mobile processor that came out as recently as 2021. The RDNA 3-based iGPU powering the current "Hawk Point" processor trades blows with the Arc "Alchemist" Xe-LPG iGPU powering Intel's "Meteor Lake" processor. Intel is expected to make a generational jump in iGPU performance with its upcoming "Lunar Lake" processor that debuts the Xe2 "Battlemage" graphics architecture for its iGPU, to which AMD is responding with a new iGPU based on the updated RDNA 3+.

During the Vision 2024 event, Intel announced that its upcoming Xeon processors will be branded under the new "Xeon 6" moniker. This rebranding effort aims to simplify the company's product stack and align with the recent changes made to its consumer CPU naming scheme. In contrast to the previous "x Generation Xeon Scalable", the new branding aims to simplify the product family. The highly anticipated Sierra Forest and Granite Ridge chips will be the first processors to bear the Xeon 6 branding, and they are set to launch in the coming months. Intel has confirmed that Sierra Forest, designed entirely with efficiency cores (E-cores), remains on track for release this quarter. Supermicro has already announced early availability and remote testing programs for these chips. Intel's Sierra Forest is set to deliver a substantial leap in performance. According to the company, it will offer a 2.4X improvement in performance per watt and a staggering 2.7X better performance per rack compared to the previous generation. This means that 72 Sierra Forest server racks will provide the same performance as 200 racks equipped with older second-gen Xeon CPUs, leading to significant power savings and a boost in overall efficiency for data centers upgrading their system.

Intel has also teased an exciting feature in its forthcoming Granite Ridge processors-support for the MXFP4 data format. This new precision format, backed by the Open Compute Project (OCP) and major industry players like NVIDIA, AMD, and Arm, promises to revolutionize performance. It could reduce next-token latency by up to 6.5X compared to fourth-gen Xeons using FP16. Additionally, Intel stated that Granite Ridge will be capable of running 70 billion parameter Llama-2 models, a capability that could open up new possibilities in data processing. Intel claims that 70 billion 4-bit models run entirely on Xeon in just 86 milliseconds. While Sierra Forest is slated for this quarter, Intel has not provided a specific launch timeline for Granite Ridge, stating only that it will arrive "soon after" its E-core counterpart. The Xeon 6 branding aims to simplify the product stack and clarify customer performance tiers as the company gears up for these major releases.

Acer today announced the new Nitro 14 and Nitro 16 gaming laptops, powered by AMD Ryzen 8040 Series processors with Ryzen AI[1]. With up to NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060[2] Laptop GPUs supported by DLSS 3.5 technology, both are backed by NVIDIA's RTX AI platform, providing an array of capabilities in over 500 games and applications, enhanced by AI. Gamers are immersed in their 14- and 16-inch NVIDIA G-SYNC compatible panels with up to WQXGA (2560x1600) resolution.

Whether in call or streaming in-game, Acer PurifiedVoice 2.0 harnesses the power of AI to block out external noises, while Acer PurifiedView keeps users always front and center of all the action. Microsoft Copilot in Windows (with a dedicated Copilot key) helps accelerate everyday tasks on these AI laptops, and with one month of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate included with every device, players will enjoy hundreds of high-quality PC games. To seamlessly take command of device performance and customizations, one click of the NitroSense key directs users to the control center and the library of available AI-related functions through the new Experience Zone.

AMD today announced the expansion of the AMD Versal adaptive system on chip (SoC) portfolio with the new Versal AI Edge Series Gen 2 and Versal Prime Series Gen 2 adaptive SoCs, which bring preprocessing, AI inference, and postprocessing together in a single device for end-to-end acceleration of AI-driven embedded systems.

These initial devices in the Versal Series Gen 2 portfolio build on the first generation with powerful new AI Engines expected to deliver up to 3x higher TOPs-per-watt than first generation Versal AI Edge Series devicesi, while new high-performance integrated Arm CPUs are expected to offer up to 10x more scalar compute than first gen Versal AI Edge and Prime series devicesii.

On March 29th, the United States announced another round of updates to its export controls, targeting advanced computing, supercomputers, semiconductor end-uses, and semiconductor manufacturing products. These new regulations, which took effect on April 4th, are designed to prevent certain countries and businesses from circumventing U.S. restrictions to access sensitive chip technologies and equipment. Despite these tighter controls, TrendForce believes the practical impact on the industry will be minimal.

The latest updates aim to refine the language and parameters of previous regulations, tightening the criteria for exports to Macau and D:5 countries (China, North Korea, Russia, Iran, etc.). They require a detailed examination of all technology products' Total Processing Performance (TPP) and Performance Density (PD). If a product exceeds certain computing power thresholds, it must undergo a case-by-case review. Nevertheless, a new provision, Advanced Computing Authorized (ACA), allows for specific exports and re-exports among selected countries, including the transshipment of particular products between Macau and D:5 countries.