Intel has reportedly cancelled the development and production of its 512-core Diamond Rapids Xeon 7 CPU. Now, the all-E-Cores processor is to be replaced with another SKU with half that number, or 256-cores.
Word about Intel’s supposed cancellation of its monster server-grade Xeon 7 CPU comes after reports initially said that the 512-core Diamond Rapids CPU was on schedule, back in April. Now, the latest update points to the blue chipmaker having just cancelled its development in its definition stage. That said, leakster Jaykihn is now saying that this has opened the door for Intel to focus on SKUs with lower cores, such as the aforementioned 256-cores monster. Additionally, the leakster also believes that the CPU would consist entirely of P-Cores, and not E-Cores.
Taking On The Red Team
Assuming that this is true, Intel’s decision to shift its focus from a 512-core all-E-Cores CPU to an all-P-Cores 256-core model would put the company squarely in the crosshairs of its red rival, AMD, and its own256-core EPYC 9006 “Venice” processor, on core count alone. Specifically, the EPUC 9996 comes with 256 Zen 6 cores and double that in threads.
Getting back to the 256-core Xeon 7 Diamond Rapids, the CPU is set to include four Compute tiles, which are known as Core Building Blocks (CBB). Each block is built upon Intel’s 18A-P Process node, and each Compute tile contains 48 Panther Cove P-Cores, flanked by an L3 cache that is localised to the tile. Reports indicate that the upcoming CPU should see a 9% increase in performance over the 18A node, and an 18% power reduction as well.
At the time of writing, Intel hasn’t given an official launch date, but speculation suggests that the blue chipmaker is aiming for a 2027 launch. By comparison, AMD already launched its EPYC 9006 Venice series earlier this year.
(Source: TPU, Videocardz)
