AMD steps up with a major new CPU launch

AMD is famous for going big when they announce news, and this year's Computex is no different.

While AI CPUs that work with the CoPilot platform and the use of NPUs were in focus, for gamers, there are some rather more important things, the new 9000 series of CPUs, based on the new Zen 5 platform.

IPC, or instructions per cycle, is the ultimate performance number to look at. AMD has once again managed to increase this number, meaning more raw computing power over otherwise identical CPUs from previous generations. In practice, this means that it will perform better, even if the clock speed and number of cores and threads remain the same, in some cases even with less power draw.

AMD's new 9000 series has an, on average, 16% IPC uplift, and the top model Ryzen 9 9950X outperforms the Intel 14900K, according to AMD we might add, but at a TDP at only 170W, despite having 16 cores and 32 threads, all running at 5.7Ghz, while the 12 core, 5.6Ghz clock speed 9900X has a TDP of only 120W. The Zen 5 platform comes with a new chipset named 870X.

AMD promises to support the AM5 platform for at least another three years, and points out that the AM4 socket is still supported and getting new CPU's despite having been in production for eight years.

Products will be released next month already, and prices are expected to follow the relative same level as current 7000 series products.