AMD tackles AI workloads with scalable embedded processors

AMD has expanded its x86 embedded processor portfolio with the introduction of 5th-generation AMD EPYC Embedded processors. These processors balance cutting-edge compute capabilities with purpose-built embedded features that enhance product longevity, reliability, system resiliency, and ease of embedded application development.

Powered by the proven “Zen 5” architecture, these embedded processors deliver leadership performance and energy efficiency, allowing networking, storage, and industrial edge systems to handle more data more quickly and with enhanced efficiency. The processors are designed for compute-intensive embedded systems with support for core counts from 8 to 192 in a single socket. Industry-leading core density delivers up to a 1.3X and 1.6X increase in data processing throughput for networking and storage workloads, respectively, making the devices ideal for network and security firewall platforms, storage systems and industrial control applications.

Utilising the new “Zen 5c” core architecture provides higher throughput with greater energy efficiency, yielding up to an estimated 1.3X increase in socket throughput and an estimated 1.3X better performance per Watt compared to competing devices. The capacity of up to 6TB of DDR5 memory per socket and expanded I/O connectivity, which supports up to 160 PCIe® Gen5 lanes with CXL® 2.0, facilitates storage capacity expansion and high-speed data transfers for networking and storage applications.

“AI-driven network traffic, exploding data storage requirements and the expansion of industrial edge computing are driving the demand for higher compute performance in embedded platforms,” said Salil Raje, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Adaptive and Embedded Computing, AMD. “5th Gen AMD EPYC Embedded processors bring leadership performance and efficiency to embedded customers, together with the long product lifecycles and enhanced system resiliency they rely on to design confidently and ensure continuous operations in demanding “always-on” environments.”

To meet the longer product lifecycle and operational requirements of embedded markets, AMD EPYC Embedded 9005 Series CPUs offer 7-year product manufacturing support, enabling system designers to guarantee long-term product availability while minimising redesign and qualification efforts. Furthermore, AMD intends to extend design lifetime operation targets from 5 years for currently sampling AMD EPYC Embedded 9005 Series CPUs to 7 years for production SKUs, thereby ensuring long-term product stability for embedded systems. These extended design lifetime operation targets are essential for embedded systems running mission-critical applications in harsh conditions, reducing unplanned downtime, repairs, and expensive system replacements.

The embedded processors feature NTB (Non-Transparent Bridging) for increased high availability in fault-tolerant multi-host configurations. NTB enhances system redundancy and failover capabilities for networking and storage systems by enabling data exchange between two CPUs in active-active configurations via PCI Express (PCIe) to allow continued operation in case of a failure. DRAM Flush enhances reliability in mission-critical storage deployments by helping to prevent data loss in the event of a power failure by flushing it from DRAM to non-volatile memory.

Dual SPI (serial peripheral interface) capabilities enable customers to load a secure and proprietary bootloader to authenticate the platform, ensuring a trusted execution environment.

Built-in Yocto framework support simplifies embedded system deployments by enabling the creation of custom Linux distributions tailored to the customer’s system. An SPDK (Storage Performance Development Kit) and DPDK (Data Plane Development Kit) enhance system performance by handling data processing for network and storage workloads within user space drivers.

AMD is working closely with ecosystem partners and leading ODMs and OEMs, including Cisco and IBM, to bring the benefits of these next-generation embedded processors to market.

“We chose AMD EPYC Embedded 9005 Series processor for one of our high-end firewall products because it delivers the high compute performance that we need, from its scalability—up to 192 cores—to its high memory and I/O bandwidth,” said Lukasz Bromirski, Director of Product Management at Cisco.

“IBM Storage Scale System 6000 is designed to deliver speed, performance, and reliability for demanding enterprise AI workloads,” said Matthew Geiser, Product Management, IBM Storage for Data, AI and HPC. “One of the main benefits of the AMD EPYC Embedded 9005 processors is the introduction of redundant paths for high data availability and robust connectivity options, which will pair nicely with performance-intensive applications running on IBM Storage Scale System.”

AMD EPYC Embedded 9005 Series processors are currently sampling with early access customers, with production shipments expected to begin in the second quarter of 2025. The AMD EPYC Embedded 9005 Series processors come in the SP5 socket form factor, which is compatible with the prior generation AMD EPYC Embedded 9004 Series, to provide a simple upgrade path for customers.