The Instinct MI300C has already been heard at least twice. It was mentioned by YouTube channel AdoredTV in May and TheNextPlatform website in June. However, it is only now that we have confirmation that it is a tangible project and not just speculation. Mentions of the Instinct MI300C appeared in Linux patches, which, apart from the separate existence of the hardware, confirm that this solution contains at least one processor chiplet.
It corresponds to older rumors that the Instinct MI300C could be a variant built purely on processor cores (although the possibility that only processor cores will prevail over GPU cores cannot be completely ruled out yet), i.e. essentially a processor equipped with HBM memories.
What sense can such a solution have? Basically similar to Sapphire Rapids-HBM. Primarily for processor acceleration of language models (AI), which benefit from storage at the HBM level, which is significantly faster than just the generic DDR5 available for classic Xeons / Epycs. The Instinct MI300C could of course be used wherever DDR5 speed is a limiting element and on the other hand V-cache (e.g. Genoa-X) insufficient in capacity.
Instinct MI300X (AMD)
The Instinct MI300 case provides space for 12 octa-core chiplets, i.e. a total of 96 cores Zen 4 and HBM3, probably with a capacity of 128-192 (maybe up to 256?) GB. Although higher values are technologically possible (with today’s HBM3 and the selected interface up to 512 GB), it would not make sense with regard to the target deployment.
However, it is still necessary to keep in mind (which is why I used the term project above, not product) that AMD has not announced the Instinct MI300C and therefore it can only be a test platform for the next generation (Zen 5 with HBM as a product planned for release confirmed by an unofficial source) and not a solution that will actually be available. The market for a combination of processor cores and HBM does exist, but it is not very large, and for most customers in this segment (processing of large language models), powerful accelerators are the preferred product. Even considering that the release of Zen 5 can happen already around the middle of next year (and the Instinct MI400C may not be far away), the possibility that the Instinct MI300C will remain only in the laboratories cannot be ruled out. If not, we will hear about it soon, for example the upcoming HotChips event (end of August) would be a good time to announce it.
2023-08-03 22:06:02
#AMD #Instinct #MI300C #tough #competition #Sapphire #Rapids #HBM #confirmed
