Intel’s CEO has revealed a new Xeon Scalable processor, codenamed “Emerald Rapids,” as part of the company’s efforts to cater to cloud-native workloads favored by hyperscalers. The processor is part of the 5th generation Xeon Scalable family and boasts 288 efficient or E-cores and an equal number of threads.
According to Intel’s press release, the “Emerald Rapids” processor is expected to deliver impressive performance improvements compared to the 4th generation Intel Xeon. This includes a remarkable 2.5 times better rack density and 2.5 times higher performance per watt, even for the 288-core model.
Intel’s move to create a high-core count processor is in line with other major players in the industry, including AMD (with 128 cores), Amazon (with 64 cores), and Ampere (with 192 cores), who are all focusing on developing processors designed for cloud-native workloads.
Paul Alcorn, a writer at Tom’s Hardware, speculates that Intel may be using two chiplets, each containing 144 E-cores. However, he raises the possibility of Intel adding a third chiplet, which would result in a staggering 432 cores. In comparison, Intel’s previous attempt at manycore products, the Xeon Phi 7295, featured 72 cores and 288 threads.
The integration of such a large number of cores in a single processor presents several challenges, including power consumption, heat dissipation, memory bandwidth, cache coherence, and clock speed. The new Xeon Scalable processor is built using Intel’s advanced 3rd and 7th generation manufacturing processes.
The cloud computing market is currently shifting toward a combination of powerful and energy-efficient cores. This trend, often referred to as the big.LITTLE concept, was initially introduced by Arm more than a decade ago and has recently made its way into data centers and desktop environments due to growing concerns about energy consumption and increased computing density.
Intel and AMD have adopted different strategies to address this audience. Intel has pursued a multi-core approach with entirely different core designs, while AMD has developed a slightly modified version of its existing Zen-4 based core, primarily distinguished by minor changes in cache and I/O. The recent launch of AMD’s Siena EPYC 8004 processor aligns with this direction.
The unveiling of the “Emerald Rapids” Xeon Scalable processor highlights Intel’s commitment to delivering high-performance solutions for cloud-native workloads and competing in the ever-evolving cloud computing market.
