Intel launches Xeon 6 processors for data center infra, vRAN

American chipmaker Intel has launched its Xeon 6 processors for artificial intelligence (AI) data center and virtualised Radio Access Network (vRAN) applications.

The Xeon 6 processors provide “industry-leading performance for the broadest set of data center and network infrastructure workloads and best-in-class efficiency to create an unmatched server consolidation opportunity”, said Intel in a media statement.

Intel said its Xeon 6 processors have already seen broad adoption across the data center ecosystem, with more than 500 designs available now or in progress.

Server systems, software solutions and services built upon the new Xeon processors will be available globally from companies such as AT&T, Verizon, Cisco, Dell Technologies, Samsung, Ericsson, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Lenovo, Microsoft, Nvidia, Oracle, Red Hat, Vodafone, Broadcom and Wind River, among many others, as per the statement.

“The Xeon 6 family delivers the industry’s best CPU for AI and groundbreaking features for networking, while simultaneously driving efficiency and bringing down the total cost of ownership,” said Michelle Johnston Holthaus, interim co-CEO of Intel and CEO of Intel Products.

The Xeon 6 range comprises the Intel Xeon 6700 and Intel Xeon 6500 series with Performance-cores (or P-cores) for data centers, which Intel said offers on average 1.4-times better performance than the previous generation across enterprise workloads. In AI systems, it can also be paired with a graphics processor (GPU) as a host node CPU.

Meanwhile, the Intel Xeon 6 for network and edge system-on-chip (SoC) leverages Intel’s built-in accelerators for vRAN, media, AI and network security, addressing the growing demand for network and edge solutions in the AI era, the company said.

According to Intel, the Xeon 6 chipsets deliver up to 2.4-times the RAN capacity and a 70% improvement in performance-per-watt compared to previous generations due to the utilisation of Intel vRAN Boost. Additionally, it comes with a built-in media accelerator — the Intel Media Transcode Accelerator — enabling up to 14-times performance-per-watt gain versus Intel Xeon 6538N.

Intel said it is collaborating with silicon, software, and solution providers to enable the AI ecosystem with Xeon 6 as the go-to CPU.

The announcement comes as Intel looks to compete strongly against its rival Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) in the data center segment, and as AI adoption gains momentum across sectors, including in telecom for network enhancement and optimisation.