“I think silicon still has a long way to go” says AMD CEO, despite increasing reliance on AI
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The pace of development for PC components may be slowing down, but AMD CEO Lisa Su thinks there is still a lot of potential that can be squeezed out of silicon before alternative solutions need to be found.
For decades, analysts, researchers, and tech experts have relied on what has become known as “Moore's Law”. This is the observation that the number of transistors in an integrated circuit will roughly double every two years. For consumers, that has meant big jumps in the performance of components like CPU and graphics cards every couple of years.
Some analysts believe that Moore's Law no longer applies, and that silicon manufacturers like AMD, Nvidia, and Intel are about to reach the limits of what is possible using silicon semiconductors. Nvidia has already spoken about how neural rendering will overcome today’s limitations. However, in an interview on YouTube channel Uncle Tony, run by the General Manager of ASUS China, Tony Yu, Dr Lisa Su spoke about the potential she still feels silicon has.
Silicon scaling is getting more difficult, says AMD CEO
“It is true that the silicon scaling is getting more difficult,” Dr Su acknowledged, “we've seen this trend for the past five years. AMD has invested in next-generation technology. Our chiplet packaging is one example of this innovation.”
The ‘chiplet' technology refers to how AMD has moved away from monolithic CPU designs to a more distributed model. Dr Su also referred to the ‘3D stacking' technology used in AMD's Ryzen X3D chips. This 3D V-Cache has made the X3D suffix CPUs the smart choice for gaming PCs.
“I think silicon has a long way to go, but we have to continue to optimize. Not just on the silicon but in the package, with the system and with software.” Dr Su concluded.
The point about software is particularly relevant. Though the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT has been very popular since launch, its popularity is precarious. AMD still lags behind Nvidia when toolsets such as FSR 4 are compared to DLSS 4, though it has certainly closed the gap.
If Team Red wants to challenge Team Green on equal footing, the software battle is becoming increasingly vital – and as you may have guessed, AI plays a large role in that.
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