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Potential Next-gen AMD EPYC "Venice" CPU Identifier Turns Up in Linux Kernel Update

InstLatX64 has spent a significant chunk of time investigating AMD web presences; last month they unearthed various upcoming "Zen 5" processor families. This morning, a couple of mysterious CPU identifiers—"B50F00, B90F00, BA0F00, and BC0F00"—were highlighted in a social media post. According to screen-captured information, Team Red's Linux team seems to be patching in support for "Zen 6" technologies—InstLatX64 believes that the "B50F00" ID and internal "Weisshorn" codename indicate a successor to AMD's current-gen EPYC "Turin" server-grade processor series (known internally as "Breithorn"). Earlier in the month, a set of AIDA64 Beta update release notes mentioned preliminary support for "next-gen AMD desktop, server and mobile processors."

In a mid-April (2025) announcement, Dr. Lisa Su and colleagues revealed that their: "next-generation AMD EPYC processor, codenamed 'Venice,' is the first HPC product in the industry to be taped out and brought up on the TSMC advanced 2 nm (N2) process technology." According to an official "data center CPU" roadmap, "Venice" is on track to launch in 2026. Last month, details of "Venice's" supposed mixed configuration of "Zen 6" and "Zen 6C" cores—plus other technical tidbits—were disclosed via a leak. InstLatX64 and other watchdogs reckon that some of the latest identifiers refer to forthcoming "Venice-Dense" designs and unannounced Instinct accelerators.

NVIDIA Reportedly Progressing Well with "Rubin" AI GPU Development - Insiders Foresee Q3'25 Sampling

Over a year ago, industry moles started chattering about a potential "late 2025" launch of NVIDIA "Rubin" AI accelerators/ GPUs. According to older rumors, one of the successors to current-gen "Blackwell" hardware could debut in chiplet-based "R100" form. Weeks ahead of Christmas 2024, Taiwanese insider reports pointed to Team Green's development of the "Rubin" AI project being sixth months ahead of schedule. Despite this extra positive outlook, experts surmised that the North American giant would not be rushing out shiny new options—especially with the recent arrival of "Blackwell Ultra" products. A lot of leaks seem to be coming from sources at (or adjacent to) TSMC.

Taiwan's top foundry service is reportedly in the "Rubin" equation; with a 3 nm (N3P) node process and CoWoS-L packaging linked to "R100." According to local murmurs, the final "taping out"—of Rubin GPUs and Vera CPUs—is due for completion this month. Trial production is expected run throughout the summer, with initial samples being ready for distribution by September. According to a fresh Ctee TW news report, unnamed supply chain participants reckon that NVIDIA's "new chip development schedule is smoother than before, and mass production (of Rubin and Vera chips) will begin as early as 2026." In theory, the first publicly exhibited final examples could turn up at CES 2026.

Chinese Tech Firms Reportedly Unimpressed with Overheating of Huawei AI Accelerator Samples

Mid-way through last month, Tencent's President—Martin Lau—confirmed that this company had stockpiled a huge quantity of NVIDIA H20 AI GPUs, prior to new trade restrictions coming into effect. According to earlier reports, China's largest tech firms have collectively spent $16 billion on hardware acquisitions in Q1'25. Team Green engineers are likely engaged in the creation of "nerfed" enterprise-grade chip designs—potentially ready for deployment later on in 2025. Huawei leadership is likely keen to take advantage of this situation, although it will be difficult to compete with the sheer volume of accumulated H20 units. The Shenzhen, Guangdong-based giant's Ascend AI accelerator family is considered to be a valid alternative to equivalent "sanction-conformant" NVIDIA products.

The controversial 910C model and a successor seem to be worthy candidates; as demonstrated by preliminary performance data, but fresh industry murmurs suggest teething problems. The Information has picked up inside track chatter from unnamed moles at ByteDance and Alibaba. During test runs, staffers noted the overheating of Huawei Ascend 910C trial samples. Additionally, they highlighted limitations within the Huawei Compute Architecture for Neural Networks (CANN) software platform. NVIDIA's extremely mature CUDA ecosystem holds a significant advantage here. Several of China's prime AI players—including DeepSeek—are reportedly pursuing in-house AI chip development projects; therefore positioning themselves as competing with Huawei, in a future scenario.

Reviewers Bemused by Restrictive Sampling of RX 9060 XT 8 GB Cards

Prior to early May, the existence of AMD's Radeon RX 9060 XT 8 GB GDDR6 model seemed to be in question. Discerning graphics card buyers tend to opt for larger pools of VRAM. In the modern era, 12 GB or 16 GB options are preferred in budget-to-mid-range segments. Additionally, media outlets are growing weary with a continued delivery of new-gen 8 GB offerings. Yesterday, Digital Foundry's Richard Leadbetter expressed a similar sentiment: "unhappily, AMD did not sample the 8 GB version of the (Radeon RX 9060 XT) card—perhaps because it knows the kind of reception it would receive from a tech press that are mostly united about the need for 8 GB cards to be shown the door." The site's Technology Editor was not alone in voicing frustrations about certain conditions that apply to international members of the media.

Yesterday, Linus Tech Tips (LTT) pulled back a major curtain. Their leaking of an alleged "official review guideline" demonstrates some level of exerting too much control. LTT shared a screenshot of AMD's "commitment to the press" (see below). On the subject of evaluators gaining access to the cheaper (baseline MSRP: $299) Navi 44 XT GPU-based card, a liaison stated: "as for the 8 GB models, AMD has enabled global reviews of both 16 GB and 8 GB models of the Radeon RX 9060 XT based on regional market demand. So in short, yes, there are some other global publications that are receiving 8 GB models for testing." VideoCardz's tracking of day one critiques reveals an almost complete seeding of 16 GB variants (starting at $349). Vitally, TechPowerUp's W1zzard will be reaching into his own pocket(s). As outlined in his reviews of various better equipped options: "since it wasn't possible to get an 8 GB model for review, everyone focused on 16 GB models. I'll buy one of course as soon as possible, to get you the crucial info how it performs." Back in April, (on his own dime) TPU's resident GPU critic acquired a Gainward GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 8 GB retail specimen. At the time, NVIDIA caught plenty of flak—only GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 16 GB models were distributed to reviewers and influencers.

TSMC Reportedly Surpasses 90% Production Yield Rate with 2 nm Process

At the tail end of Q1'25, industry whispers suggested that TSMC's premier facilities had completed cutting/leading-edge 2 nm (N2) trial production runs. By early April, company insiders alluded to a confident push into preparations for a futuristic 1.4 nm node at the "P2" Baoshan Plant. This is a very distant prospect; watchdogs envision a 2028 release window. According to expert predictions, cross-facility 2 nm wafer mass production phases are expected to start by the end of this year. Foundry staff seem to be actively pursuing an improvement in yields; earlier guesstimates indicated the crossing of a 70% milestone—good enough for full-blown manufacturing runs.

Fresher musings point to staffers and advanced equipment achieving and stepping just beyond an impressive 90% mark, albeit with silicon intended for "memory products." As of mid-May, Samsung's competing "SF2" product—allegedly—remains in testing phases. South Korean insider news reports posit 2 nm GAA trial yields passing 40%—a significant development for the megacorp's foundry business. Roughly a month ago, (in public) TSMC leadership spoke about an unprecedented demand for 2 nm wafers. Due to rumors of greater than anticipated charges for important TSMC clients, Samsung Semi's top brass is supposedly trying to woo the likes of NVIDIA and Qualcomm.

Rumor of 18-core Qualcomm Snapdragon X2 Elite Flagship Emerges; on Claimed 64 GB RAM Test Platform

During a recent Computex keynote presentation, Qualcomm announced the next edition of its Snapdragon Summit. This year's event will take place in Hawaii, starting on September 23 and concluding on the 25th. The company's 2024 new product showcase took place last October, so an earlier than expected scheduled follow-up has caused industry observers to raise a collective eyebrow. Insiders foresee an unveiling of Qualcomm's next-gen flagship notebook/slimline laptop processor; mid-April leaks produced a smattering of elevated (generational) performance numbers. Late last week, Roland Quandt weighed in with fresh pre-release theories: "SC8480XP aka SD X2 Elite in testing with 64 GB RAM... looking like (an) 18-core thing, more and more."

Not long ago, the tenured semiconductor industry watcher linked the alleged Snapdragon X2 Elite flagship chip to a SK Hynix 48 GB RAM and 1 TB SSD-equipped SiP (System-in-Package) test platform. Mid-March "import-export database records" pointed to early evaluations of 18-core processor designs. The very best current-gen Snapdragon X Elite SoC leverages a 12-core "Oryon" design. Additional murmurs have driven speculation about diversified Snapdragon X2 Elite chips; allegedly powering desktop applications. Q1'25 rumors suggested the existence of setups configured with 120 mm AIO cooling solutions.

Intel "Arrow Lake-S Refresh" CPUs Mentioned in "W880" Workstation Motherboard Chart

We have not heard much about Intel's much-debated "Arrow Lake-S Refresh" (or ARL-S Refresh) desktop CPU family in the second quarter of this year. Going back to March, Golden Pig Upgrade predicted another revival of Team Blue's troubled mid-gen update—aka the Core Ultra 300 series. A week or two later, Jaykihn—another tenured discloser of inside track info—theorized an upcoming lineup of "-K and -KF only" SKUs. Hardcore PC hardware enthusiasts and overclockers will likely welcome these unlocked offerings, but an alleged lack of "normal" refreshed options will sting certain consumer bases. The ever intrepid momomo_us has discovered an interesting tidbit; bringing and end to two+ months of "Arrow Lake-S Refresh" silence.

A leaked "W880 PCH" workstation-grade motherboard flow diagram mentions support for "Arrow Lake-S Refresh." This is under the banner of "Core Ultra (Series 2) processors up to 125 W TDP." Unsurprisingly, we are looking at repeat business with the current generation's LGA 1851 socket platform. Intel is still working on the "Nova Lake‑S" (NVL‑S) CPU range; serving as a natural successor to their "Arrow Lake-S" desktop lineup. Lately, data miners have unearthed details regarding a matching "LGA 1954" socket type. According to official announcements, "Nova Lake" processors are "on track" to launch somewhere within 2026. Before then, "Arrow Lake-S Refresh" CPUs are expected to arrive later this year—possibly signalling the final tranche of "ARL."

Xiaomi XRING 01 SoC Die Shot Analyzed by Chinese Tech YouTuber

Three weeks ago, Kurnal and Geekerwan dived deep into Nintendo's alleged Switch 2 chipset. The very brave Chinese leakers are notorious for their acquiring of pre-release and early silicon samples. Last week, their collective attention turned to a brand-new Xiaomi mobile chip: the XRING 01. After months of insider murmurs and official teasers, the smartphone giant recently unveiled its proprietary flagship SoC. According to industry moles, Xiaomi has invested a lot of manpower into a special chip design entity—leadership likely wants to avoid a repeat of prior first-party developed disappointments. Despite rumors of disappointing prototype performance figures, mid-May Geekbench results pointed to the emergent XRING 01 mobile chip being up there with Qualcomm's dominant Snapdragon 8 Elite platform. Die shot analysis has confirmed Xiaomi's selection of a TSMC 3 nm "N3E" node process; also utilized by the latest Apple, Qualcomm and MediaTek flagships. Overall die size is 114.48 mm² (10.8 x 10.6 mm), with 109.5 mm² of used area; comparable to Apple's A18 Pro SoC footprint (refer to Geekerwan's comparison shot, below).

Unlike nearby rivals, the XRING 01 seems to not sport an integrated 5G modem. Notebookcheck surmised: "it is rumored to use an external radio from MediaTek. It isn't located on the actual die itself, and likely a contributing factor to why its size is so small." Annotations indicate the presence of off-the-shelf/licensed Arm CPU cores (ten in total): two Cortex-X925 units, four Cortex-A725 units, two Cortex-A725 units, and two Cortex-A520 units. Additionally, an Arm Immortalis-G925 MP16 iGPU was identified. A 6-core NPU—with 16 MB of cache—was highlighted, but it is not clear whether this is a proprietary effort or something bought in. Observers have noted the absence of SLC cache. GSMArena posited: "the Geekerwan team speculates that (Xiaomi's) omission of the SLC has hurt GPU efficiency—it's pretty fast, but it uses more power than the Dimensity GPU at peak performance. The more efficient CPU combined with the fact that the GPU rarely runs at full tilt makes for pretty good overall efficiency in real-life gaming tests." The XRING department's debut product is impressive, but industry watchdogs are looking forward to refined variants or full-fledged successors.

Client Interest in Samsung Foundry Reportedly Buoyed by Nintendo Switch 2 SoC Production Deal

The Nintendo Switch 2 hybrid console is due to launch globally next Wednesday (June 4). The highly anticipated next-gen handheld is powered by a custom NVIDIA processor. To the surprise of many industry watchdogs, both parties have semi-recently disclosed a couple of technical details regarding their fruitful hardware collaboration. Historically, Nintendo has guarded many aspects of its past generation hardware. Throughout the 2020s, data miners and leakers have unearthed plenty of pre-release information—leading to theories about the Switch 2 chipset's origins. During the Switch 1 era, TSMC was the chosen manufacturing partner. NVIDIA's off-the-shelf Tegra X1 mobile SoC powered the first wave of Nintendo Switch (2017) devices, in 20 nm form. A 2019 revision resulted in Switch Lite and (refreshed) Switch models being equipped with a more efficient 16 nm solution, also present within 2023's premium OLED variant.

Since then, Switch 2's alleged NVIDIA Tegra T239 SoC was linked to a Samsung 8 nm node process. Earlier this month, extremely brave Chinese leakers produced "full die shot" evidence of South Korean foundry origins. Bloomberg insider news articles have implied that Samsung Semi's mature 8 nm FinFET node is better suited—rather than an equivalent TSMC product—for the Switch 2's custom NVIDIA chipset. Unnamed sources have mentioned critical factors; namely stable production and process compatibility. Industry moles reckon that Samsung leadership is actively and aggressively pushing for a longer Switch 2 chipset production deal. Renewed terms could include a future die shrink; pre-launch analysis indicates a sizeable 207 mm² footprint. Beyond foundry biz negotiations, additional murmurs suggest company executives dangling an OLED panel supply agreement. Industry experts have viewed Samsung's key entry—into the gaming console chip market—as a seismic development. A DigiTimes article dives into a so-called "tripartite cooperation"—involving Nintendo, NVIDIA, and the South Korean semiconductor giant. The Samsung Foundry has floundered and struggled in recent times, but is keen to catch up with its arch rival. Fresh rumors have AMD and Sony considering Samsung's chip making channels; possibly with futuristic PlayStation hardware in mind.

EA Reportedly Closes Cliffhanger Games; Black Panther Project Canceled

Throughout the Spring season, Electronics Arts (EA) has reduced development team numbers across several of its international first-party game development studios. According to a fairly fresh IGN news report, another North American operation has been shutdown. Cliffhanger Games was working on a triple-A Black Panther intellectual property, with Marvel's full approval—as teased back in mid-2023. IGN's inside sources have leaked an email—allegedly authored by Laura Miele, EA Entertainment's president—that was addressed the latest round of layoffs at Cliffhanger Games, and unspecified "mobile and central teams." Apparently these adjustments are necessary; Miele (reportedly) believes that these changes will: "sharpen our focus and put our creative energy behind the most significant growth opportunities...These decisions are hard. They affect people we've worked with, learned from, and shared real moments with. We're doing everything we can to support them—including finding opportunities within EA, where we've had success helping people land in new roles." In recent times, company leadership had openly discussed a move away from licensed IP projects. Supposedly, Miele's email mentions a focus on core EA franchises going forward: The Sims, Skate, Battlefield, and Apex Legends.

eXtas1s, a somewhat unreliable source of inside track info has weighed in with related news. The Spanish leaker shared an offbeat claim: "I have learned that around 400 more layoffs are coming at EA, the total closure of Codemasters HQ, and that those developers will be integrated into EA Sports (F1), and a new Need For Speed that is already in development." Going back to late April, EA declared that an unspecified number of layoffs were underway at Codemasters. Earlier this month, the long-running British racing game specialist had stopped working on the popular WRC franchise. Since then, NACON—a French publication house—has picked up the FIA World Rally Championship license. Within the same time period, an official announcement outlined the cancelation of two unannounced projects at Respawn Entertainment. Prior to cessations, the Los Angeles, California-based outfit was working on two "early stage" titles—insider reports suggested that one of these mystery IPs was some sort of nascent Titanfall title. Interestingly, Respawn's leader—Vince Zampella—is steering the next Battlefield game. Several EA studios have been roped into a multipronged production approach.

AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT 16 GB Graphics Card Geekbenched; Leaked Results Suggest 25-31% Faster Than RX 7600 XT

Just over a week ago, the Radeon RX 9060 XT graphics card became official; introduced as the fastest gaming GPU option for "under $350." It represents the second wave of AMD's RDNA 4 GPU generation, but definitive verdicts are not expected until a lifting of review embargoes—likely happening the day before retail release: June 4. Evaluation samples are very likely in the possession of media outlets and influencers; as evidenced by pre-launch benchmark results appearing within the Geekbench Browser database. A nondescript Radeon RX 9060 XT 16 GB model was put through OpenCL and Vulkan wringers, via "Geekbench 6.2.2 for Windows AVX2." Overall tallies are 109315 and 124251, respectively. The test rig consisted of Team Red's Ryzen 7 9800X3D CPU, a Gigabyte X870E AORUS MASTER motherboard, and 32 GB of DDR5-8000 RAM.

Geekbench results are not the best indicators of gaming performance on modern PC platforms, but semi-useful data can be compared to figures generated by predecessors and current-gen siblings. Quick analysis points to the benchmarked Radeon RX 9060 XT 16 GB sample pulling ahead of its RDNA 3-based elder—the Radeon RX 7600 XT—by 25 to 31%. Stepping up against the Radeon RX 7700 XT 12 GB model, the plucky new candidate trails by 14% in OpenCL stakes and 12% in Vulkan. Naturally, a performance gulf exists between the Radeon RX 9070 16 GB (non-XT) card and its forthcoming smaller sibling—almost a +23% difference in OpenCL, and roughly +32% in Vulkan. Crucially, other Geekbench Browser entries suggest that NVIDIA's competing GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 16/8 GB and RTX 5060 8 GB designs hold slight advantages in terms of OpenCL numbers. AMD's Navi 44 XT GPU-powered card nudges just beyond the RTX 5060's overall Vulkan result. A clearer picture of Radeon RX 9060 XT's standing will be painted next week; stay tuned for TechPowerUp's inevitable in-depth analyses of board partner specimens.

AMD Reportedly Discontinues B650 Motherboard Chipset, Insider Predicts Q3'25 Stock Depletion

Yesterday, members of the Bobantang discussion board disclosed intriguing insider knowledge. According to recent industry murmurs, AMD has informed motherboard manufacturing partners about the discontinuation of B650 chipset production. Chinese media outlets have jumped on this alleged revelation, with Western counterparts quickly joining in on the fun (hours later). ITHome and Unika's Hardware were the first channels to parse info from the Bobantang forum. Since a 2022 launch, Team Red's mid-range B650 board design has remained a firm favorite for many budget-conscious owners of Ryzen 7000 (plus 8000G and 9000) series desktop processors. A "direct" successor—B850—reached retail at the start of this year, but higher price points combined with relatively minor feature set advantages have discouraged a lot of buyers. The likes of ASUS, ASRock, Colorful and Sapphire have released (or previewed) new B650 chipset-based mainboard products in 2025—mostly in microATX form factors.

A Bobantang member has prophesized two major trends—the first being: "after AMD's B650 chip production line is shut down, its inventory is expected to be large. According to Team Red, the B650M series inventory sales plan will probably end in the third quarter (of 2025)." A second claim was outlined: "it is expected that the digestion time of the tail end stock of AMD's B650 series motherboard will be longer, at least there will be inventory to sell in the second quarter (of this year), but the inventory of B650M chips will become more and more scarce as time goes by." PC hardware watchdogs propose a fall in B850 pricing; likely expertly timed to occur shortly after the complete depletion of predecessor stock—by the fourth quarter of this year.

Intel Mesa Driver Updated with Unannounced Arc Xe2 "Battlemage" GPU Identifiers

Back in January, keen trackers of internal Team Blue developments stumbled upon encouraging signs of new Arc Xe2 "Battlemage" graphics card activity. Fast-forward to Computex 2025; where Intel and involved board partners unveiled Pro-grade B60 and B50 workstation card products. In the interim, rumors of a canceled "BMG-G31" GPU-based gaming series turned up online. Leading up to last week's important trade event, Team Blue's social media accounts were actively engaging with the community—mostly answering queries regarding a speculated Arc Xe2 "B770" model. According to secretive show floor banter, higher-end B-series gaming graphics cards could be lined up for a fourth quarter launch (this year).

Freshly discovered "BMG" identifiers were highlighted by Lasse Kärkkäinen—this latest tip-off was directed at GawroskiT, Haze2K1 and x86deadandback. At various points in 2024 and 2025, these veteran industry observers have unearthed crucial "Battlemage" inside track information. Team Blue's Mesa graphics driver for Linux was updated late last week; Kärkkäinen's attention was drawn by 0xe220, 0xe221, 0xe222 to 0xe223 device codes. These IDs seemingly exist in a separate category, distinct from "BMG-21." Intel's B580 and B570 cards are based on "Battlemage" BMG-21 GPU die foundations. According to Wccftech's expert opinion: "at least two of these listings belong to Intel's recently-unveiled Battlemage 'ARC Pro' variants...The rest of the two device IDs will belong to newer models, and the one we anticipate to be unveiled is the Arc B770, since Intel 'indirectly' confirmed its release at Computex, but this will occur in the latter part of the year, presumably at Intel Innovation 2025." Inevitably, the Arc Xe2 "Battlemage" family will be succeeded by "Celestial"—recent leaks have suggested development of Xe3 reaching a pre-silicon validation phase.

CXMT Reportedly Diversifying Manufacturing Footprint with HBM3 - Could Expand DDR5 Production

The rising profile of ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) has supposedly attracted international scrutiny as-of-late. Despite dealing in commercial memory product lines—currently DDR5, DDR4, LPDDR5 and LPDDR4X—the Chinese manufacturer could be stepping up its game in the near future. According to a fresh DigiTimes Asia news report, the nation's "top DRAM supplier" could be freeing up production capacity—in favor of enterprise-grade third-gen High-Bandwidth Memory (HBM3). Industry moles believe that a major sacrifice will be made; namely CXMT's DDR4 line. Despite an alleged early 2025 ramping up of related activities, the firm's factories could refocus on new endeavors by mid-2026. Additionally, insiders reckon that company leadership is shifting commercial priorities: "by year-end 2025, DDR5 is expected to make up more than 60% of CXMT's output, alongside LPDDR4/5."

The move into more advanced memory technologies is reportedly the result of government instruction. DigiTimes outlined a new strategy: "as CXMT scales up, it's also shifting rapidly to DDR5. The company only began mass-producing DDR4 in late 2024, yet it's already expected to issue an end-of-life (EOL) notice by the third quarter of 2025. The speed of this pivot and retooling has surprised many across the industry. Industry sources say the sudden shift is policy-driven, as Beijing pushes key chipmakers to accelerate alignment with national goals, especially around AI and cloud infrastructure." Murmurs of CXMT's forthcoming exit from DDR4 production have spread across local chip making businesses; causing a sudden doubling of Nanya-branded 8 Gb DDR4 chip prices in China. The manufacturer's early journey into DDR5 territories looked promising on paper—around January 2025—but the latest DigiTimes report disclosed inside track info regarding troubled quality and yield issues. In particular, initial samples have reportedly exhibited unstable performance when crossing a 60°C (140°F) threshold.

Intel Arc Xe2 B770 "Battlemage" dGPU Reportedly Lined Up for Q4'25 Launch

In the run-up to Computex 2025, Intel sent out mixed messages about the future of Arc Xe2 "Battlemage" desktop graphics cards. A combination of first-party teasers and "official leaks" (courtesy of AIBs) indicated an (eventual) introduction of professional B-series products. PC hardware enthusiasts were looking forward to a possible unveiling of higher-end gaming cards; the rumor mill has floated a "B770" option in recent times. Industry observers detected further encouraging pre-release signs; a "B750" identifier was discovered on Intel Japan's website—likely existing as placeholder material. Team Blue's social media account drummed up additional hype, prior to the commencement of last week's key trade event.

The TechPowerUp crew and other media outlets did not stumble upon any Intel Arc Xe2 B750 or B770 specimens at the Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center. According to a mid-visit Tweakers.net article, several unnamed figures (likely board partner company representatives) divulged inside track knowledge during Computex 2025. The online publication outlined a smattering of details: "sources close to Intel confirm the existence of the Arc B770 video card. According to them, the introduction is planned for the second half of this year. The card is expected to appear in the fourth quarter, although the planning can of course still change. Intel is working on an Arc B770 video card based on the 'Battlemage' architecture. Tweakers was able to confirm this with multiple sources during Computex. So far, Intel has only released lower-positioned B570 and B580 video cards with this architecture." Now defunct product roadmaps had the "Battlemage" series wrapped up by 2024, but delays and other factors have allegedly caused major timeline slippages. An industry expert claimed that a larger "BMG-G31" GPU development project was closed down at some point late last year, but fresher production activities have generated renewed beliefs that the "Battlemage" gaming line will expand beyond "cheaper" tiers.

Qualcomm Job Advert Alludes to Snapdragon-powered "Xbox Adjacent" Products

Late last week, tech news headlines were generated by a curious Qualcomm/NUVIA job advertisement. The presence of Xbox-related activities—at the US firm's Redmond, Washington office—has set off watchdog alarm bells. Microsoft's HQ is also located in this Seattle Metropolitan Area business hub. The job description outlined a sales director position—including interesting tidbits: "support sell-in activities for the next generation of Surface and Xbox products built on Snapdragon solutions" and "help define the next generation Surface and Xbox portfolios." Older leaks have suggested Microsoft's weighing up of ARM64 processor architecture, with next-gen Xbox designs in mind. Since the publication of widespread reportage, Qualcomm has edited out any mention of Xbox from the offending job ad. Given the latest evidence, fresh speculation has emerged from online media outlets. In theory, the company's hardware engineers could be formulating a next-gen Arm-based handheld—not directly related to "Project Kennan."

Jez Corden, executive editor of Windows Central, has dismissed many next-gen "handheld" or "home console" projections. Insiders believe that in-progress first-party development centers around AMD (x86) solutions. Similarly, Sony is reportedly collaborating with Team Red. The speculated PlayStation 6 (and a handheld offshoot) has been linked to Zen 6 and UDNA/RDNA 5 IPs. In response to initial claims, Corden reached out to shadowy industry figures. As disclosed in his opinion piece: "sources confirmed to me this morning that the next Xbox systems are not based on Qualcomm chips. There might be some third-party "Designed for Xbox" Arm-based offerings, like the Logitech G Cloud. But, the main plan from Microsoft, at least for now, is for the next-gen Xbox systems to have as much compatibility with your current library as possible. The overheads required to emulate games built for Microsoft's AMD-based systems are beyond what the Snapdragon line up is currently capable of." Today, Digital Foundry pointed out that Microsoft's "Xbox Play Anywhere" marketing campaign has created a looser categorization of related hardware. Thus providing extra scope for adjacent and supplemental devices (in the near future).

Xiaomi CEO Teases Proprietary "XRING 01" Mobile SoC - Remembers Previous In-house Efforts

Yesterday, Lei Jun—the CEO of Xiaomi—finally introduced his firm's proprietary XRING 01 mobile chipset, via a couple of Weibo posts. In an initial afternoon short blog entry, the executive informed his followers with a happy unveiling: "I would like to share with you a piece of news: Xiaomi's self-developed and designed mobile phone SoC chip, named XRING 01, will be released in late May. Thank you for your support!" About a month ago, the company's oft-rumored return to in-house chip efforts was linked to a major corporate offshoot. The speculated "chip platform department" was likely established a while ago, given early May reports of the division's staff headcount exceeding 1000+. At the time, an "Xring" codename was mentioned by industry tipsters (in China).

In a follow-up "Weibo Text" bulletin, Xiaomi's head honcho recalled older project timelines and technological attempts: "even drinking ice for ten years can't cool your blood! Xiaomi's journey to making chips began in September 2014. Time flies, and more than ten years have passed in the blink of an eye...Figures 2 and 3 are photos of Xiaomi's first chip launch conference in February 2017." Jun's did not provide any hints about the XRING 01 chip's underpinnings. Late 2024 leaks alluded to a reportedly troubled prototype—insiders connected this design to fairly new Arm Cortex architecture, and a TSMC 4 nm "N4P" node process. The vast majority of Xiaomi's modern flagship smartphone devices utilize top-end Qualcomm Snapdragon chipsets. For example, the brand's latest Xiaomi Ultra 15 model is powered by the ubiquitous Snapdragon 8 Elite (Gen 4) platform.

US Government Reportedly Eyeing Expansion of Chinese Chipmaker "Export Blacklist" - Insiders Mention CXMT

According to a Financial Times (FT) news article, the US Government's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) is considering an implementation of additional "export blacklist" entries. Roughly two months ago, a significant update affected the export trade of around eighty Chinese business "entities." Despite a recent "cooling off" of elevated tariff-related activities, significant political tensions still exist between the two powerhouse nations. According to five of FT's unnamed insiders, ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT)—a rising star within China's growing memory manufacturing industry—is a potential candidate for "banishment." Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC), and Yangtze Memory Technologies Co. are (allegedly) already categorized as blacklisted organizations.

Apparently, the nation's most prominent chipmaker and memory module producer (respectively) have managed to sidestep certain restrictions, via offshoot avenues. FT believes that the US administration is actively investigating several of these subsidiaries. CXMT seems to be an independent body, with no military connections—specializing in commercial DDR5 and DDR4 products—but its rising profile has attracted international attention. Around March 2024, Bloomberg heard rumors about the US BIS department's "weighing up" of sanctions, with CXMT in mind. The relatively young DRAM manufacturer (established back in 2016) still trails behind South Korean and Western competitors, in terms of technological advancements—but its initial DDR5 efforts have (supposedly) impressed local evaluators and early adopters.

MAXSUN Website Updated with Intel "Arc Pro B60" Product Category

Late last week, Intel's social media account dropped a major hint about a new family of Arc Pro GPUs turning up at Computex 2025. At the time, insiders shared very basic details about a rumored "B60" workstation graphics card—likely derived from familiar Xe2 "Battlemage" silicon. Team Blue staffers have recently teased a mysterious "B770" gaming solution, but this "higher -end" desktop option could emerge well after next week's important trade show (in Taipei, Taiwan). Intel and its board partners seem to be readying productivity-focused cards; theoretically spun-off from the existing B580 12 GB model.

April/May leaks have indicated pairings of Team Blue's "BMG-G21" GPU die and 24 GB of GDDR6 VRAM. On Monday, industry observers noted the very fresh registration of Maxsun Arc B580 "iCraft 24G" and "iCraft 24G OC" SKUs. Days later, VideoCardz has stumbled upon evidence of an "Arc Pro B60" product category. At the time of writing, this entry remains empty—within the manufacturer's "Intel" card inventory. Active "Arc B580" and "Arc B570" categories direct you to already launched (12 GB) iCraft and Milestone models. According to slightly older reports, Maxsun is expected to introduce/launch "gaming" Arc B580 24 GB variants at some point after Computex 2025. The immediate focus—for Intel and participating AIBs—seems to be an imminent unveiling of "Arc Pro B-series" cards.

Manli Rep. Confirms Downgrading of GeForce RTX 5090D Graphics Cards - Only 24 GB of GDDR7 VRAM

Around late April, Chinese industry insiders started whispering about a possible halting of NVIDIA GB202 "Blackwell" GPU shipments into the region. Team Green's local board partners released custom "market exclusive" GeForce RTX 5090D 32 GB cards; featuring slightly downgraded flagship silicon. Since launch, Chinese hardcore gaming enthusiasts and DIY AI firms have observed impressive performance credentials, despite the presence of factory limited specifications. On May 6, reports suggested a complete halt of GeForce RTX 5090D sales in China. Fresher rumors indicate NVIDIA's engineering team return to the drawing board; with their alleged preparation of an even weaker GeForce RTX 5090D design.

A group of Baidu tipsters have discussed a key area of (further) compromise: VRAM capacity. The original GeForce RTX 5090D configuration was armed with 32 GB of GDDR7 VRAM; mid-May speculation envisioned a 24 GB variant. Earlier today, harukaze5719 highlighted an intriguing Weibo post. A Manli webshop representative has "confirmed" that revised GeForce RTX 5090D cards will become available around July. Up until recent events, this Chinese brand was selling flagship GPU-based Gallardo (black) and Stellar (white) models. A web chat session was captured and shared on Weibo—in addition, the sales agent disclosed their belief that (NVIDIA's) supply of GeForce RTX 5090D GPUs has been "insufficient since launch" time. On a semi-positive note, customers will not be greeted by price hikes. Manli anticipates "unchanged" price tags; albeit associated with lesser specifications.

NVIDIA Reportedly Postpones SOCAMM Rollout; Could Debut with Next-gen "Rubin" AI GPUs

Around mid-February, South Korean sources alleged that NVIDIA was in the process of developing an innovative new memory form factor. The System on Chip Advanced Memory Module (SOCAMM) design is reportedly a collaborative effort. Team Green's usual set of memory partners—SK Hynix, Samsung, and Micron—were mentioned in early 2025 news articles. Just over a month later, official press material revealed a key forthcoming deployment—Micron stated: "(our) SOCAMM (product), a modular LPDDR5X memory solution, was developed in collaboration with NVIDIA to support the NVIDIA GB300 Grace Blackwell Ultra Superchip. In a (rumored) blow to all involved parties, ZDNet Korea posits that Team Green has postponed the commercialization of their "next-generation low-power DRAM module" IP. According to industry moles, the SOCAMM standard will not debut with this generation of enterprise-focused "Grace-Blackwell" chips. Instead, fresher theories indicate a postponement into next-gen territories—possibly rescheduled to arrive alongside the firm's "Rubin" GPU architecture.

NVIDIA has reportedly sent out notices to major memory partners—(alleged) May 14 updates were received by Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix (in South Korea) and Micron (USA). As a result, SOCAMM supply timelines are (apparently) adjusted. A newer "Cordelia" board design—acting as a substrate for GB300 chips, and compatible with SOCAMM—was in the picture. The latest whispers suggest a return to an existing "Bianca" board configuration, that supports current-gen LPDDR memory modules. ZDNet believes that company engineers have run into several obstacles: "Blackwell chips have been continuously experiencing difficulties in securing design and packaging yields. In fact, the 'Cordelia' board is known to have reliability issues, such as data loss, and SOCAMM has reliability issues, such as heat dissipation characteristics." NVIDIA briefly previewed its futuristic "Rubin Ultra" AI GPU design during GTC 2025—on-stage, a "second half of 2027" release window was teased.

ASRock Radeon RX 9060 XT Steel Legend & Challenger SKUs Registered in South Korea

On May 9, the South Korean Radio Agency (RRA) logged four unannounced ASRock Radeon RX 9060 XT SKUs. Since early Spring, harukaze5719 has kept a watchful eye on intriguing pre-launch registrations. For example, they discovered Gigabyte's Gaming OC 16 GB and 8 GB models over a month ago. AMD's board partners seem to be prepping custom options; well in advance of next week's teased unveiling (at Computex 2025). ASRock seems to be cutting things quite fine, with their registering of (allegedly) Navi 44 XT GPU-based Steel Legend and Challenger models. Rumors of a canceled AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT 8 GB (GDDR6) variant emerged a while back, but certain insiders have insisted that this cheaper option will arrive alongside a 16 GB sibling.

Recent RRA filings indicate an upcoming two-pronged approach, involving a good number of AIBs. Buoyed by harukaze5719's fresh findings, VideoCardz carried out additional detective work. They soon unearthed "in stock" ASRock Steel Legend and Challenger factory overclocked Radeon RX 9060 XT cards. Apparently, a Vietnamese store is already courting local client interest—prices are not visible on the unnamed shop's webstore, but staffers are reportedly "encouraging customers to inquire" about costs of ownership. Gaming GPU enthusiasts will recall the amusingly extra early arrival of custom Radeon RX 9070 XT and RX 9070 retail stock in Europe; in anticipation of a supposedly scuppered January launch window. Unlike its main rival, AMD seems to be running on schedule with its next wave of RDNA 4 gaming products.

Leaked AMD "Sound Wave" Arm-based APU Linked to "Microsoft Surface (2026)" Lineup

Late last month, data miners unearthed a wide variety of unannounced AMD Ryzen processor IPs. A "Sound Wave" product category received less attention, but Team Red's curious codename has reemerged in the middle of May. Thanks to fresh Kepler L2 theorizations, this mysterious mobile APU family has a potential end destination. Leaks from 2024 suggested that company engineers were working on an unusual Arm-based processor branch. AMD is cozily well-versed in all things x86, but an alleged present day diversification—into Arm (x64) territories—has confounded a fair few industry watchdogs.

In a tangential conversation—forking off from speculative "Zen 6" and PlayStation 6 APU chatter—Kepler L2 reckons that Team Red "Sound Wave" chips will be deployed in 2026, possibly within a refreshed Microsoft Surface lineup. Current-gen Arm-based offerings—leveraging Qualcomm Snapdragon X processors—have generated mixed user impressions (press and public alike). Microsoft and Qualcomm's "Windows on Arm" (WoA) platform partnership was elevated earlier on in May (with cheaper options), but troublesome hardware-to-software compatibility issues have reportedly caused some rifts in this relationship. As of last week, evaluators seemed to be poking around with NVIDIA's rumored Arm-based "N1" chip series on Windows. In theory, AMD's futuristic "Sound Wave" designs could do battle with (claimed) Team Green and MediaTek collaborative efforts.

Samsung Foundry Reportedly Making Significant Progress with 2 nm GAA Evaluation Phase

South Korean semiconductor insiders and analysts believe that Samsung's Foundry business is catching up with a main rival. Earlier this month, TSMC leadership openly discussed an unprecedented demand for 2 nm wafer products. Industry moles believe that the Taiwan's top chipmaker is still ahead of contenders in nearby nations. As a result of an alleged leading and comfortable position, TSMC is reportedly upgrading its state-of-the-art facilities with brand-new equipment—indicating a push into 1.4 nm fields. According to a fresh Chosun Biz news article, Samsung engineers are in the process of narrowing the gap between their 2 nm Gate-All-Around (GAA)—also known as SF2—manufacturing node process and TSMC's equivalent technology.

Last month, leaks suggested SF2 trial yields passing the ~40% mark—in comparison, a ~60% figure was uttered by TSMC insiders. Chosun Biz's sources claim that the South Korean foundry team is close to getting their "2 nm process performance evaluation" into a crucial final stage. Yesterday's report posits that NVIDIA and Qualcomm are in the equation; these VIP clients are purportedly considering SF2 as a "second channel" option. Chosun Biz reckons that Team Green is sizing up Samsung Foundry flagship tech for next-gen commercial and enterprise GPUs. Meanwhile, the San Diego-based smartphone processor specialist could be eyeing up SF2 (for a future AP). The latest inside track info points to 2 nm GAA trial production runs breaking beyond aforementioned (approximate) 40% yield rates. TSMC 2 nm wafer charges are reportedly greater than expected, so big industry players are allegedly investigating "cheaper" non-Taiwanese production avenues.

AMD Radeon "GFX13+" Target Found in Code Update; Linked to UDNA/RDNA 5 Architecture

Closer to the start of 2025, Kepler L2 shared "PlayStation 6" inside track info. The venerable leaker—of mostly AMD behind-the-scenes details—theorized that Sony's sixth-gen home console was based around an early fork that branched off from a mysterious "GFX13" GPU architecture. Earlier today, this target identifier has appeared again. Kepler L2's latest investigations have pulled the "GFX13+" target from kernel-level codebase updates. Data miners have often pulled compelling pre-release tidbits from official repositories; AMD's software engineering team open-source developments are quite visible. Over a year ago, similar detective work connected the "GFX12" IP to RDNA 4—nowadays, better known as the Radeon RX 9000 graphics card family. Despite Team Red's official insistence that RDNA 4 was a priority on desktop platforms, supposed discrete mobile variants were leaked last month. In addition, RDNA 3.5 seems to be a mainstay for at least another generation of integrated graphics solutions.

Looking beyond these current-gen graphics architectures, AMD leadership has already previewed a "unified" path forward. Last September's announcement revealed the convergence of RDNA (gaming) and CDNA (enterprise) GPU technologies: dubbed "UDNA." Present day leaks do mention a far out "RDNA 5" line (also "Navi 5x"), but in the same sentence as "UDNA." Kepler L2 commented on the (screen captured) presence of "ENABLE_WAVEFRONT" and "ENABLE_WAVEGROUP" kernel code properties: "I think it's related to SWC (Streaming Wave Coalescer/pseudo out-of-order execution). Each SIMD takes multiple wave32/wave64 (a wavegroup) as inputs and reorders the work items of each wave to reduce execution divergence." Fresh rumors suggest the distant RDNA 5/UDNA avenue being good enough to expand into higher-end gaming card territories. So far, RDNA 4 has hit a ceiling with Navi 48 GPU-powered Radeon 9070 XT offerings.
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