Key information
Ahead of Microsoft’s event on Wednesday, October 7, AMD has released benchmarks for its new Gorgon Halo chips to compete with Nvidia’s anticipated RTX Spark devices. The first Gorgon Halo devices have recently launched, with some configurations priced upwards of $7,099.
AMD used ComfyUI and the Ryzen AI Max+ Pro 495 in a 192GB configuration to measure generative AI performance against Intel’s Core Ultra X9 388H on a 64GB memory system. AMD supports up to 192GB of unified memory with Gorgon Halo, whereas RTX Spark devices top out at 128GB, allowing AMD's hardware to run larger models locally.
Reviewers note that higher memory capacity allows for running larger models, but does not guarantee faster execution. Across previous evaluations, AMD’s hardware underperformed compared to the DGX Spark in time to first token and tokens per second. Furthermore, token throughput declines as context length increases, which could cause larger models to enter unusable territory.
The initial Gorgon Halo devices, such as the Minisforum MS-S1 Max-P495, are currently available for purchase with top-line configurations sitting around $7,000. Meanwhile, Nvidia's RTX Spark launch is anticipated following a tease late last week.
