In what appears to be a mistake or misunderstanding, ASUS appears to have released a spec list for one of its flagship notebooks that only hints at AMD's next-generation mobile processors. We saw AMD apply a new nomenclature to their Phoenix silicon (Ryzen 7040 series), and it looks like AMD is once again making a change when it comes to naming schemes for their processors.
ASUS' listing, now removed, is still available through Google's cache at the time of writing, highlighting an already existing model, the VivoBook S 16 OLED (M5606), but an unknown AMD Ryzen AI 9 are listed. HX170 processor. Based on the specs, this is not part of the current Hawk Point (Phoenix/Phoenix 2) platform.
Google cache shows ASUS Vivobook S 16 OLED with Ryzen AI 9 HX 170 processor
As sometimes happens in this industry, what appears to be an accidental leak on one of ASUS' product pages unearthed an unknown processor from AMD. I first learned about this through a user's post on his Twitter. @Harukaze5719. We're not going to speculate on the rumors, but we confirmed this for ourselves by checking Google's cache. Sure enough, a new unannounced model of the Ryzen mobile processor is listed, as highlighted in the image above from Google. Below the ASUS Vivobook S 16 OLED (M5606) notebook list in the product comparison section, we have AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 170 listed. This appears to be one of his chips for AMD's upcoming Zen 5 based mobile, codenamed Strix Point.
So the seemingly new nomenclature adopted by AMD clearly puts the focus on AI, or rather Ryzen AI, by including it in the name. The Ryzen AI 9 HX 170 appears to be a 12C/24T Zen 5 mobile version with a Ryzen AI NPU or similar integrated within the chip. Given that Microsoft defines only processors with NPUs with performance of 45 TOPS or higher to be considered “AI PCs”, the list states that the chips are equipped with Xilinx ( Current AMD (Xilinx) based NPUs are more likely to meet these requirements. Up to 77 TOPS of AI performance is available. The HX series is strikingly similar to AMD's (and Intel's) previous HX naming series of desktop replacement SKUs for laptops, so assuming the details of ASUS' mistake are correct, this is likely a very high-end It is considered to be a high TDP part. .
AMD laptop roadmap from Zen 2 in 2019 to Zen 5 for release in 2024
It has been known for some time that AMD plans to release AMD's Zen 5-based Strix Point lineup sometime in 2024. Given the timing of Computex 2024, which is just over four weeks away, it's not quite there yet. Photos of Zen 5 performance and architectural changes from Zen 4. AMD CEO Dr. Lisa Su also confirmed that Zen 5 will feature his RDNA graphics enhanced within the Strix Point SoC.Strix combines next-generation Zen 5 cores with enhanced RDNA graphics and an updated Ryzen AI engine to significantly boost your PC's performance, energy efficiency, and AI capabilities.”
It's entirely possible that AMD is ready to announce more details about Zen 5 for Computex 2024, but nothing has been confirmed. We do know that her CEO at AMD, Dr. Lisa Su, is scheduled to give the show's opening keynote. Dr. Lisa Su during his AMD keynote at Computex 2022 where he announced the Zen 4 microarchitecture and also announced his 3D V-cache stacking. Today at Computex 2021 he is known as Ryzen X3D CPU.
With that in mind, AMD and Dr. Lisa Su love to announce new products and architectures at Computex, so you'll just have to wait until the beginning of next month. It remains to be seen how AMD will name the upcoming Zen 5 mobile and desktop processors, but we hope everything becomes clear soon. No other specifications are available for ASUS Vivobook S 16 OLED (M5606) at this time. Still, we expect them to become available once AMD updates information about Zen 5 and Strix Point.