AMD unveils expanded AI PC processor range for 2025 launch

AMD has announced an expansion of its AI PC processor portfolio, introducing new Ryzen AI Max, Ryzen AI 300, and Ryzen 200 Series processors, alongside their respective PRO versions for commercial use.

The newly unveiled Ryzen AI Max Series processors are aimed at premium thin and light notebooks, offering high-performance computing capabilities. These processors come with up to 16 "Zen 5" CPU cores, 40 AMD RDNA 3.5 graphics compute units, and an AMD XDNA 2 Neural Processing Unit (NPU) capable of up to 50 Trillions of Operations Per Second (TOPS).

Jack Huynh, Senior Vice President and General Manager of the Computing and Graphics Group at AMD, stated, "As consumers and professionals increasingly recognize the productivity benefits of AI PCs, AMD is further increasing its performance leadership in the market. With the next generation of AI-enabled processors, we are proliferating AI to devices everywhere, and bringing the power of a workstation to thin and light laptops."

The Ryzen AI Max PRO Series processors are tailored for business-class mobile workstations, empowering them to handle large-scale engineering and architectural models as well as complex AI-accelerated tasks. These processors integrate AMD PRO Technologies, enhancing enterprise-grade security and manageability.

AMD has also introduced the Ryzen AI 300 Series and Ryzen AI 300 PRO Series processors. These processors are equipped with up to 8 "Zen 5" CPU cores and utilise the RDNA 3.5 graphics architecture. They promise to deliver up to five times better performance compared to the previous generation NPU, broadening AI capabilities across notebooks.

The company continues its FP8 platform strategy with the Ryzen 200 and Ryzen 200 PRO Series processors, featuring the "Zen 4" architecture. These are intended for everyday productivity, providing up to 16 NPU TOPS for AI processing tasks in essential applications.

Pavan Davuluri, Corporate Vice President Windows + Devices at Microsoft, commented, "It's been incredible to see AMD and Microsoft's longstanding partnership move into the next wave of technology, bringing AI innovation to our OEM partners. We're thrilled to see the expansion of Copilot+ PCs with AMD's new Ryzen AI products for professionals, content creators, and mainstream consumers alike."

AMD's latest processors have sparked collaborations with several original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). Dell, ASUS, HP, Lenovo, and MSI have announced new systems that incorporate AMD's processors. These partnerships aim to lead the market in AI PC adoption and expand the reach of AI-enabled computing solutions.

Samson Hu, Co-CEO of ASUS, stated, "ASUS has always been on the cutting edge of technology, working to bring the highest level of performance to our customers. Today, we are announcing new Ryzen-powered systems, bringing best-in-class processing power to enable our customers to be on the forefront of AI innovation."

Additionally, Jim Nottingham, Senior Vice President and Division President of Advanced Compute and Solutions at HP Inc, spoke on AMD's impact stating, "In collaboration with AMD, HP identified pain points in customer workflows that the new HP ZBook Ultra G1a and HP Z2 Mini G1a solve. Powered by AMD's Ryzen AI Max PRO Series processors, these workstations will be the first to offer this architecture on a workstation."

Luca Rossi, President of Lenovo Intelligent Devices Group, added, "At Lenovo, we believe meaningful innovation stems from strong partnerships. Our collaboration with AMD is a testament to this, as we work together to shape the future of computing with advanced, AI-driven solutions."

The new processors and associated products are set to be made available in the first and second quarters of 2025, promising to enhance performance for various consumer and professional applications by embedding advanced AI capabilities into their systems.