Intel's codenamed Falcon Shores hybrid processor combines x86 and Xe GPU cores to offer formidable performance for AI and HPC workloads, but it will consume an extreme 1500W of power, reports ComputerBase.de, citing a comment by Intel. Such an extreme power consumption will require Intel to use advanced cooling methods.
Intel's Falcon Shores will be a multi-tile processor featuring both x86 cores (tiles) for general-purpose processing and Xe cores (tiles) for highly parallel AI and HPC workloads. Intel itself once said that it would offer five times higher performance per watt and five times higher memory capacity and bandwidth compared to its 2022 products while also offering a 'simplified' programming model.
The company still hasn't revealed detailed performance expectations for its Falcon Shores processors. To feed Falcon Shores, Intel will probably have to use proprietary modules (or promote a new OAM specification) as even the latest OAM specification (OAM 2.0), which features a new high-power connector, can only support power levels of around 1000W. Even the power consumption of Nvidia's B200 won't exceed 1,200W.
Cooling a 1,500W processor is another matter. Some of Intel's partners may use liquid cooling, but others could probably opt for liquid immersion cooling, a technology that Intel has been promoting for several years now.
Intel seems to be pinning a lot of hope on its Falcon Shores processor. Although Intel's Gaudi 3 is significantly more powerful than its predecessors, and Intel expects the industry to adopt this accelerator for various uses, the company seems somewhat cautious about the product's success. This is perhaps because its expectations for its Falcon Shores processor are considerably higher.
Considering that by the time Falcon Shores arrives in 2025, there will be more software developers familiar with Xe architecture for supercomputers, the adoption of Falcon Shores will likely be relatively smooth for a new product.
