Tag: Intel

Intel Core i9-10900K 10 Core CPU Benchmarks Shows It’s More or Less A Core i9-9900K With Up To 30% Better Multi-Threading Performance

Official performance numbers for the Intel Core i9-10900K 10 Core CPU have leaked out by Tom’s Hardware. Intel’s Core i9-10900K will be the flagship chip of the 10th Gen Comet Lake family that is expected to land in the coming months but will be featuring the same 14nm architecture that has long been running since Skylake.

Intel’s Core i9-10900K 10 Core CPU Benchmarks Leaked – Same Single-Core Performance As The Core i9-9900K, But Up To 30% Faster in Multi-Threading Workloads

Just last week, we got to see the full 10th Gen Comet Lake lineup along with their detailed specs. In total, there are 11 SKUs confirmed for initial launch but the Core i9-10900K CPU would be the flag carrier of Intel’s sixth 14nm family.

Intel Core i9-10900K – 10 Cores, Up To 5.3 GHz Single-Core, 4.9 GHz All-Core

The Intel Core i9-10900K will be the flagship part of the 10th Generation Desktop CPU family. Intel has a few tricks up their sleeves to offer even better performance than the Core i9-9900KS. The i9-10900K features 10 cores, 20 threads a total cache of 20 MB and a 125W TDP. The chip has a base frequency of 3.7 GHz and a boost frequency of 5.1 GHz. However, using Intel’s Turbo Boost Max 3.0 technology, the chip can boost up to 5.2 GHz on a single-core and what’s even better is the 4.9 GHz all-core boost. Some of the features of this particular chip include:

Up to 4.8 GHz All-Core Turbo

Up to 5.3 / 4.0 GHz Thermal Velocity Boost Singe / All-core Turbo

Up to 5.2 GHz Intel Turbo Boost Max 3.0

Up to 10C and 20T

Up to DDR4-2933 MHz dual-channel

Enhanced Core & Memory Overclocking

Active Core Group Tuning

Here’s the interesting part, the chip would also get Thermal Velocity Boost, similar to the current flagship parts. CPUs that support this algorithm, like the Core i9-10900K, would feature even faster boost frequencies of 5.3 GHz (single-core) and 4.9 GHz (all-core). However, as the name suggests, only top-tier cooling solutions would be able to allow full utilization of the Thermal Velocity Boost feature. So unless you rock a high-end AIO liquid cooler or a closed-loop setup, don’t expect a sustained velocity boost but rather short bursts until the threshold is hit. It will be interesting to know the full extent of the features that this function has to offer and what kind of cooling would the Core i9-10900K requires in general.

Intel Core i9-10900K 10 Core CPU Benchmarks

Coming to the benchmarks, the Intel Core i9-10900K was compared against the Core i9-9900K that has 8 cores and 16 threads. Since these are not public slides but internal performance projections, Intel also listed down the PL2 power states for each chip which shows the maximum TDP when all cores are hitting the turbo frequency. The Core i9-9900K is a 95W and 210W (PL2) chip while the i9-10900K is a 125W and 250W (PL2) chip. These figures put AMD’s 7nm Ryzen chips a league ahead & we aren’t even factoring in the stunning performance AMD’s chip boasts with ECO mode applied.

Performance for the chip was measured in both single-core and multi-core scenarios with the list of benchmarks including SYSMark, SPEC, XPRT, and Cinebench R15. Surprisingly, Intel still internally uses benchmarks which they don’t consider as ‘Real-World’ performance metrics. In single-thread workloads, the chip is around 3% faster than the Core i9-9900K which is due to its higher 5.3 GHz core clock compared to 5.0 GHz on the Core i9-9900K. In multi-threaded workloads, the chip is up to 30% faster which is also due to the fact that there are 2 extra cores (25% more) than the Core i9-9900K.

Both processors were tested with the security patches up to November loaded on to the test setup of Windows 10. With little to no single-threaded performance increase and only multi-threaded up-lifts expected from the Core i9-10900K at the cost of even higher power draw, it looks like AMD can just offer a price cut on their existing Ryzen 3000 series parts when 10th Gen Core i9 parts arrive & call it a day.

AMD may not even consider offering a price cut as their Ryzen 3000 are competitive enough to compete against Intel’s 10th Gen parts unless Intel brings Core i9 down to $350-$400 US which seems unlikely but then again, they have the financial horsepower to do so to remain competitive in the desktop segment. Intel’s 10th Gen lineup may offer multi-threading on all parts along with higher clock speeds but they would require more power and beefier cooling. With Zen 3 expected next year and AMD eating up market share in all segments, Intel really needs to rethink their CPU strategy and we hope that they can hit their process roadmap goals on time if they really want to hit AMD back.

Intel Could Split 10th-Gen Comet Lake CPUs Into Two Different Sockets

In what seems to be an unprecedented move, even for Intel, Comet Lake might end up taking residence on not one, but two new sockets: Chip detective @momomo_us recently discovered a string in the latest version of CPU-Z that references the LGA1159 socket, which may complement the LGA1200 socket that we already know is coming for Comet Lake.

One of the very first leaked Comet Lake slides associated the upcoming 14nm chips with the LGA1200 socket, and recent pictures of the chips confirm the pin count. 

Now CPU-Z screenshots of Comet Lake processors show an LGA1159 socket, which is backed up by the discovery of the socket in CPU-Z’s identification strings. Pictures of purported LGA1159 Comet Lake CPUs have also emerged. 

At this point, it’s unclear if the new socket is real, but if it is, we have a few theories of what Intel could be up to.

We suspect that Intel plans to split support for Comet Lake between different platforms, with the 125W K-series chips likely requiring the LGA1200 socket while the remaining 65W and 35W Comet Lake parts will get by with the LGA1159 socket. This separation sounds reasonable as the high-end Comet Lake chips have steeper power requirements and the extra pins in the LGA1200 socket can provide the necessary juice.

If our assumption is valid, Intel could potentially position the LGA1200 socket as a “value HEDT” (high-end desktop) platform. We hope the chipmaker doesn’t roll with this strategy as it wouldn’t fare well with enthusiasts, considering that rival AMD has already brought HEDT-like performance to mainstream motherboards with the Ryzen 9 3950X 16-core chip that continues to leverage the advantages of the company’s long-lived AM4 socket.

A couple of days ago, Iranian news outlet Tnews shared two very interesting Comet Lake slides that help support our assumption. The first slide shows three divisions for Comet Lake: Enthusiast (125W), Mainstream (65W) and Low Power (35W). The K-series which, in all likelihood is comprised of the Core i9-10900K, i7-10700K and i5-10600K, can be configured to 95W at lower clock speeds. However, the real nugget lays in the second slide.

The second slide clearly shows that the Comet Lake chipsets are divided into two major categories. The W480, Q470, Z490 and H470 chipsets allegedly employ the CML PCH-H chipset, while the lower-end B460 and H410 chipsets are seemingly based of the CML PCH-V chipset. It’s not confirmed, but we think the ‘H’ stands for High-Performance while the ‘V’ alludes to Value. 

It’s plausible that W480, Q470, Z490 and H470 motherboards come with the LGA1200 socket, while the B460 and H410 motherboards utilize the LGA1159 socket. It’s conceivable that the 65W and 35W Comet Lake chips would work fine on any Intel 400-series motherboard, but the high-end 125W parts are likely only compatible with the four high-performance models.

There is little doubt that there will be two sockets for Comet Lake, we’re just not sure how Intel is going to sell that idea to consumers.

Intel DG1 GPU is Tiger Lake in Discrete Form Factor, Features 96 EUs and 768 Shader Units

Information already rumored has just been confirmed by an EEC entry filed by Intel (KOMACHI via Videocardz): the DG1 graphics card will have 96EUs. If the DG1 follows the design pattern of Tiger Lake (and there is every indication it will) then each EU will have 8 shading units for a total of 768 shader units per DG1. This is the exact same count as TGL and matches the information we know so far: that DG1 is essentially TGL in a discrete form factor.

Intel’s DG1 graphics card is essentially discrete Tiger Lake graphics with 96 EUs

Before we go any further, here are the leaked codenames from the EEC filing:

DG1 External FRD1 96EU Accessory Kit (Alpha) Development Kit (DGD12KEF3A)

Discrete Graphics 96EU DG1 8+2 Windows External PROD HOST SDP (Alpha) (DGD12SEH4A)

Discrete Graphics 96EU DG1 6+2 Windows External PROD HOST SDP (Alpha) (DGD12SEH3A)

An EEC filing usually means that a prototype is on its way to being finalized and usually precedes arrival on shelves by around 5-6 months. This means you are likely going to be seeing DG1 break cover at or around June/July in 2020. Likely launch dates for this card is Computex 2020 or Gamescom 2020. DG1 graphics marks Intel’s first attempt at making a discrete GPU and the nomenclature used in this EEC filing suggests this is a development board of some kind and likely one in an external closure.

Now, for some fun educated speculation (readers that are here only for facts, this is your cue to jump off): while we cannot calculate the upper bounds of performance so easily, we can estimate minimum performance and this GPU (at the very least) should be able to achieve 2 instructions per clock – if not more. At a minimum clock speed of 1400 MHz, you are looking at 2.1 TFLOPs. If you estimate a more liberal 1700 MHz then it becomes 2.6 TFLOPs. Either way, you are looking at a GPU that will perform between 2.1 to 3 TFLOPs, and depending on IPC gains, will have roughly the performance level of a GTX 1650.

If priced correctly (read: throwaway pricing) this has the potential to seriously disrupt the market and simultaneously make a name for Intel as a GPU manufacturer. This, of course, depends on whether or not the company can get AIBs on board to produce this in volume and rumors would indicate that the company is having difficulty doing this. That said, considering Intel has ample financial resources to throw at the problem, I am sure AIBs would jump on board provided Intel subsidizes the adventure enough – which they might just do.

In any case, 2020 is going to be a make or break year for Intel with its first 10nm processors and its first discrete GPU slated for arrival in 2020. The company’s former marketing chief, Chris Hook, slated arrival of the GPU by late 2020, which means we probably won’t be seeing much of it at CES (sneak peeks excepted), if at all. And while we are on the topic of marketing, Intel has promoted our good friend (and former colleague) Ashraf Eassa to the post of marketing manager for discrete graphics.

Intel discrete GPU struggles: won’t compete against NVIDIA or AMD

Raja Koduri could be the next one on Intel’s chopping block according to new rumors on DG1

Intel has been going through all sorts of issues over the last couple of years, with its troubled modem division selling to Apple for $1 billion, the constant world of hurt AMD is hitting them with in the consumer/HEDT/server CPU markets, and now it seems their discrete GPU is in trouble.

A fresh new rumor has floated online saying that Intel’s upcoming DG1 is in trouble, cementing in some of the whispers I’ve been hearing from my own industry sources. A new post on Reddit suggests that “DG1 is not shaping up very well at all”, and that the thermals and power is “looking to be dismal as Koduri is having a hard time reigning in DG1’s power envelope. Anyone that has followed his GPU designs know that this has been his downfall forever”.

A new graphics card with a 25W TDP isn’t going to get anywhere near even the lowest-end Radeon or GeForce graphics card from competitors to Intel in AMD and NVIDIA, and if DG1 is this bad at this long away from release — Koduri won’t look good at all. He was the man behind the failed launch of Radeon RX Vega under AMD and Radeon Technologies Group at the time, with the Reddit post continuing: “The real question now is should we expect to see Koduri still be working for Intel after Q3’20? If not, you can expect to never see DG2 make its way to a retail product”.

Intel NUCs Hit With Five New Security Flaws

Intel issued yet another security advisory this week, this time saying that its NUC mini PCs are vulnerable to escalation of privilege attacks. The company also released firmware patches for the mini PCs in order to mitigate the potential attacks. Researchers have found multiple vulnerabilities in NUC PCs this year.

NUC owners are strongly advised to download the latest update for their model’s firmware, which you can get from the company’s website.

According to Intel’s advisory, the five vulnerabilities could allow attackers to escalate privileges on a NUC device. Two of them received a Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) base score of 7.8, and three got a 7.5 score, all of which represent high severity vulnerabilities. 

The first flaw (CVE-2019-14608) is due to improper buffer restrictions in the NUC firmware, which could allow attackers to enable privilege escalation via local access to the device. 

The second vulnerability (CVE-2019-14610) describes improper access control in NUC firmware that could allow an authenticated user to enable escalation of privilege via local access.

The third vulnerability (CVE-2019-14609) comes from improper input validation in firmware that also lead to privilege escalation via local access.

A fourth NUC firmware flaw (CVE-2019-14611) was an integer overflow that could result in the same type of attack.

The final flaw (CVE-2019-14612) is an out of bounds write in NUC firmware that attackers could also exploit to escalate system privileges via local access.

Besides all of the speculative execution attacks against its processors, Intel has also had to issue multiple security advisories for its NUC family of devices this year. The company has been attempting to prioritize security since the Spectre CPU vulnerabilities were revealed, and, in part, that means encouraging researchers to look for vulnerabilities on its platforms. 

Intel didn’t have to ask twice because the vulnerability disclosures seem to keep on coming. It remains to be seen if Intel’s attempt to rid its products of security flaws will result in fewer bugs as the years go by, or if we’ll see an increase in bug disclosures as more researchers investigate Intel’s products.

Intel’s Manufacturing Roadmap from 2019 to 2029: Back Porting, 7nm, 5nm, 3nm, 2nm, and 1.4 nm

After some emailing back and forth, we can confirm that the slide that Intel’s partner ASML presented at the IEDM conference is actually an altered version of what Intel presented for the September 2019 source. ASML added animations to the slide such that the bottom row of dates correspond to specific nodes, however at the time we didn’t spot these animations (neither did it seem did the rest of the press). It should be noted that the correlation that ASML made to exact node names isn’t so much a stretch of the imagination to piece together, however it has been requested that we also add the original Intel slide to provide context to what Intel is saying compared to what was presented by ASML. Some of the wording in the article has changed to reflect this. Our analysis is still relevant.

One of the interesting disclosures here at the IEEE International Electron Devices Meeting (IEDM) has been around new and upcoming process node technologies. Almost every session so far this week has covered 7nm, 5nm, and 3nm processes (as the industry calls them). What we didn’t expect to see disclosed was an extended roadmap of Intel’s upcoming manufacturing processes. It should be noted that the slide presented at the conference by Intel’s partner, ASML, was modified slightly from its original source.

They say a slide is worth 1000 words. Here’s 1000 words on Intel’s future.

This is Intel’s original slide, not detailing which nodes in which years. However, it should be easy enough to figure out that each one of the elements in the bottom row is the next process node along, otherwise the +/++ wouldn’t make sense.

ASML applied these assumptions to the slide it presented at the IEDM keynote, but the company did not disclose that they had modified the slide.

So let’s go through some key areas.

1.4nm in 2029

Intel expects to be on 2 year cadence with its manufacturing process node technology, starting with 10nm in 2019 and moving to 7nm EUV in 2021, then a fundamental new node in each of 2023, 2025, 2027, 2029. This final node is what ASML has dubbed ‘1.4nm’. This is the first mention on 1.4nm in the context of Intel on any Intel-related slide. For context, if that 1.4nm is indicative of any actual feature, would be the equivalent of 12 silicon atoms across.

It is perhaps worth noting that some of the talks at this year’s IEDM features dimensions on the order of 0.3nm with what are called ‘2D self-assembly’ materials, so something this low isn’t unheard of, but it is unheard of in silicon. Obviously there are many issues going that small that Intel (and its partners) will have to overcome.

+, ++, and Back Porting

In between each process node, as Intel has stated before, there will be iterative + and ++ versions of each in order to extract performance from each process node. The only exception to this is 10nm, which is already on 10+, so we will see 10++ and 10+++ in 2020 and 2021 respectively. Intel believes they can do this on a yearly cadence, but also have overlapping teams to ensure that one full process node can overlap with another.

The interesting element to these slides is the mention of back porting. This is the ability for a chip to be designed with one process node in mind, but perhaps due to delays, can be remade on an older ‘++’ version of a process node in the same timeframe. Despite Intel stating that they are disaggregating chip design from process node technology, at some point there has to be a commitment to a process node in order to start the layouts in silicon. At that point the process node procedure is kind of locked, especially when it goes to mask creation.

In the slide, it shows that Intel is going to allow a workflow such that any first gen 7nm design could be back ported to 10+++, any first gen 5nm design could be back ported to 7++, and so on. One can argue that this roadmap might not be so strict with the dates – we have seen Intel’s 10nm take a long time to bake, so expecting the company to move with a yearly cadence on + updates alongside a two-year cadence with main process technology nodes would appear to be a very optimistic and aggressive cadence strategy.

Note that this isn’t the first mention of back porting hardware designs when it comes to Intel. With the current delays to Intel’s 10nm process technology, it has been widely rumoured that some of Intel’s future CPU microarchitecture designs, originally designed with 10nm (or 10+, 10++) in mind might actually find a home on a 14nm process due to the success of that process node.

Development and Research

Normally with process node developments, there will be different teams working on each process node. This slide states that Intel is currently in development of its 10+++ optimizations as well as the 7nm family. The idea is that the ‘+’ updates are capturing the low hanging fruit from a design standpoint every generation, and the number represents a full node benefit. Interestingly we see Intel’s 7nm being based on 10++, whereas in the future Intel sees 5nm come from the base 7nm design, and 3nm coming from 5nm. There is no doubt that some of the optimizations that enter each +/++ update will filter into future designs as and when they are needed.

In this slide, we have Intel’s 2023 node currently in the definition stage. At this IEDM conference there’s a lot of talk about 5nm in this timeframe, so some of those improvements (such as manufacturing, materials, consistency, etc.) will ultimately end up in Intel’s process depending on which design houses they partner with (historically Applied Materials). It is worth noting that 5nm is listed as a 2023 node, which is around the time that ASML will start selling its ‘High NA’ EUV machines to help with better path definition during the manufacturing process. I’m not sure if High NA will intercept at 5nm or 3nm, assuming this Intel roadmap has its dates correct and Intel is able to stick to it, but it is something to consider

Beyond 2023, Intel is currently in the ‘path-finding’ and ‘research’ mode. As always when looking this far out, Intel is considering new materials, new transistor designs, and such. At this IEDM conference we’re seeing a lot of talk of gate-all-around transistors, either as nano-sheets or nano-wires, so no doubt we’re going to see some of that as FinFET runs out of steam. TSMC is still using FinFETs for its 5nm process (Intel’s 7nm equivalent), so I wouldn’t be surprised if we see something like nano-sheets then nano-wires (or even hybrid designs) come into Intel’s manufacturing stack.

It’s worth also pointing out, based on the title of this slide, that Intel still believes in Moore’s Law. Just don’t ask how much it’ll cost.

The Intel-AMD Showdown

It’s beginning to look like a really interesting market. After years of essentially one player taking all the spoils, we now have a significant second that has the technology to make a difference.

The incumbent is of course Intel INTC, which just apologized to customers for continued supply constraints, despite double-digit growth in supply from the first half to the second while maintaining its raised guidance (fourth-quarter revenue of $19.2 billion and EPS of $1.28 and full-year revenue of $71 billion and EPS of $4.42).

Unanticipated increase in PC demand is not the only issue however. Intel is also trying to maintain 14nm production while ramping up 10nm. It’s building out capacity and one might argue why this wasn’t done before while there were all the product delays. But supply-demand parity hasn’t been achieved yet and management hasn’t said anything about when it will be. So that’s that.

On the other side, we have challenger Advanced Micro Devices AMD, which is announcing one breakthrough device after another, significant partnerships with companies like Alphabet’s GOOGL Google and Amazon AMZN and manufacturing alliances with leading edge foundry Taiwan Semiconductor TSM, which is making its 7nm chips.

It’s true that NVIDIA NVDA is also a player, but it doesn’t have x86 at the core and is instead focused on GPUs and the largescale parallel processing they enable. This is making waves at HPC and the data center in general (especially after the Mellanox acquisition). But NVIDIA doesn’t play in all the x86 categories like PCs, mobile computing and data center the way AMD does. So Intel and AMD are the main rivals.

Just for perspective, let’s see what the two companies brought in last quarter. Intel generated $19.19 billion in revenue and $1.42 in EPS (up $27 million and 2 cents a share, respectively, or more or less level with year-ago revenue and EPS in percentage terms). AMD brought in $1.80 billion in revenue and $0.14 in EPS (up $148 million (9.0%) and 4 cents a share (40%), respectively from last year).

So AMD’s revenue and per share earnings are about 9% of Intel’s, making it almost like a David-Goliath situation. Moreover, Intel has $12.025 billion on its balance sheet while AMD has a mere $1.209 billion. AMD also generates a small fraction of the cash flow that Intel does.

The difference in financial position between the two companies, despite the fact that AMD is growing much faster, means that Intel has significant resources to go into a very aggressive price war that AMD will find it harder to sustain. This can especially hurt the company as it preps to target mid and high-range segments (especially in mobile computing).

Intel will no doubt adopt this strategy as its design teams have fallen behind and semiconductor designs take years to develop, which is followed by qualifying the production process, ramping production and bringing to market. Intel being the foundry for its own chips has the added difficulty that it doesn’t rely on expertise that’s already available (it may however do this if necessary).

Intel’s management team is also not what it used to be. Given these difficulties and the fact that current management has admitted to a likelihood of share losses to AMD, all the traditional Intel partners have their Plan B, which is AMD. So they have at least some AMD-powered models and systems.

But what about the valuation? At 12.29X forward twelve months’ earnings, INTC shares are trading in a tight range, but below its median value over the past year. They’re also trading below the S&P 500’s 17.97X. So Intel shares are undervalued. AMD on the other hand is trading at 48.02X, which is close to the high end of the range over the past year, so it’s obviously overvalued.

That would be unless it consistently beats estimates over the next year by a significant margin. So for comparison, let’s take a look at its surprise history. The company has met estimated earnings in each of the last two quarters, it beat by 21% in the quarter prior to that and missed by 11% before that, averaging a 2.2% gain in the last four quarters. This doesn’t look too significant. If AMD doesn’t significantly top expectations in the next year, the current valuation looks untenable.

That’s why we have a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) on AMD shares and a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) on INTC shares. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Intel Comet Lake-S 10-Core CPU Benchmarks Surface

Fresh benchmarks for Intel’s 10th-Generation Comet Lake-S (CML-S) processors have started to appeared in the Geekbench 4 database. The results reveal the chips’ core counts, L2 and L3 cache, as well as the preliminary base and boost clocks. But as always, it’s wise to take these with a some grains of salt, since they are submissions of unreleased hardware. 

As a quick refresher, Comet Lake-S will replace Intel’s current Coffee Lake Refresh lineup. The upcoming Comet Lake-S chips continue to hail from Intel’s 14nm process node. However, they’re likely to be based on an improved 14nm+++ process. Comet Lake-S is also expected to bring higher core counts and more cache.

Starting with what we assume is the flagship part, the unidentified Comet Lake-S processor will apparently come rocking 10 cores and 20 threads. It seemingly has 640KB of L1 cache, 2.5MB of L2 cache and 20MB of L3 cache. Geekbench 4 lists the processor with a 1.51 GHz base clock and 3.19 GHz boost clock.

The other unknown Comet Lake-S part is said to sport six cores and 12 threads, plus 384KB of L1 cache, 1.5MB of L2 cache and 12MB of L3 cache. Geekbench 4 identified the chip as having a 1.99 GHz base clock and 2.89 GHz boost clock.

According to Geekbench 4’s report, both Comet Lake-S processors are equipped with Intel’s UHD Graphics 630, which is the same iGPU (integrated graphics processing unit) that debuted with the chipmaker’s Coffee Lake family. It’s perplexing that Geekbench 4 only detects 23 EUs (execution units) for both Comet Lake-S parts when the UHD Graphics 630 is known to offer up to 24 EUs. When it comes to speeds, the 10-core chip’s iGPU is clocked at 1.2 GHz, while the six-core is confined to 1.15 GHz.

AMD has already landed the first blow with its third-generation Ryzen desktop processors that maxes out at 16 cores with the AMD Ryzen 9 3950X. Obviously, Intel would be at a disadvantage core-wise if Comet Lake-S arrives topping out at just 10 cores, as rumored. So, It’ll be interesting to see how Intel ends up responding. 

Intel unveils its first chips built for AI in the cloud

Intel is no stranger to AI-oriented chips, but now it’s turning its attention to those chips that might be thousands of miles away. The tech firm has introduced two new Nervana Neural Network Processors, the NNP-T1000 (below) and NNP-I1000 (above), that are Intel’s first ASICs designed explicitly for AI in the cloud. The NNT-T chip is meant for training AIs in a ‘balanced’ design that can scale from small computer clusters through to supercomputers, while the NNP-I model handles “intense” inference tasks.

The chipmaker also unveiled a next-gen Movidius Vision Processing Unit whose updated computer vision architecture promises over 10 times the inference performance while reportedly managing efficiency six times better than rivals. Those claims have yet to pan out in the real world, but it’s safe to presume that anyone relying on Intel tech for visual AI work will want to give this a look.

You’ll have to be patient for the Movidius chip when it won’t ship until sometime in the first half of 2020. This could nonetheless represent a big leap for AI performance, at least among companies that aren’t relying on rivals like NVIDIA. Intel warned that bleeding-edge uses of AI could require performance to double every 3.5 months — that’s not going to happen if companies simply rely on conventional CPUs. And when internet giants like Facebook and Baidu lean heavily on Intel for AI, you might see practical benefits like faster site loads or more advanced AI features.

AMD Ryzen 9 APUs could present a new challenge for Intel

AMD has been doing everything right and is looking to parlay its recent victories into sustained success for the long haul. According to hardware leaker @Komachi, the chipmaker could do just that through the use of integrated graphics.

As TechRadar highlights, a list of processors recently published by the hardware leaker highlights four Ryzen 9 parts – two 45W units and two 15W “Pro” models – sporting a B12 designation. This, according to the leaker, indicates the presence of 12 graphical compute units.

Ryzen 9 APUs, as the publication points out, could benefit from heightened clock speeds and increased efficiency afforded by their 7-nanometer design. This, in turn, would presumably benefit graphics compute units as well. It’d be an interesting alternative to discrete graphics solutions and would of course further press Intel in the portable laptop space.

AMD has had a phenomenal 2019, recently reporting its highest quarterly revenue since 2015. The company still has a lot of ground to make up but has been steering the ship in the right direction with increased market share ever since Q2 2017.

As always, it’s worth reiterating that the post from @Komachi neither confirms nor denies anything as nothing is truly official until official word comes from the horse’s mouth. With CES 2020 less than two months away, however, the timing is certainly right for a hardware announcement.