AMD unveils CPU-only Helion rack to support agentic AI workloads

AMD unveiled Helion, a CPU-only rack-scale system for agentic AI workloads, at the OCP Global Summit in San Jose on October 12, with CEO Dr. Lisa Su announcing the design during her keynote. Helion is powered by 6th Gen AMD Epyc 'Venice' server CPUs supporting up to 32,768 CPU cores, can be customized with AMD Instinct GPU nodes, and is slated for availability in November 2026, with AMD planning to contribute the specification to OCP. Launch ecosystem partners include Cisco, Dell, Hon Hai Technology (Foxconn), HPE, Lenovo, Supermicro, and Wiwynn.

AMD has unveiled Helion, a CPU-only rack designed to support agentic AI workloads. Announced by AMD CEO Dr. Lisa Su during her keynote speech at the OCP Global Summit in San Jose today October 12 , the company said Helion builds on the “open-platform approach” of its Helios rack-scale solution https://www.sdxcentral.com/news/amd-challenges-nvidias-networking-dominance-with-helios-racks-boasting-50-higher-bandwidth/ , launched earlier this year. Designed for hyperscale customers, Helion is powered by 6th Gen AMD Epyc 'Venice' server CPUs, supporting up to 32,768 CPU cores. However, AMD said users can customize the rack’s configurations by integrating CPU and AMD Instinct GPU nodes in order to match agent execution, model inference, and tailor compute to each deployment’s performance, power, and cost needs. Available in both liquid- and air-cooled versions, AMD says this approach allows users to “create virtually any configuration needed” to support their requirements. “Agentic AI is not a single workload. It spans personal agents, enterprise applications, code execution and complex workflows, each with different compute requirements,” said Dan McNamara, SVP and GM, compute and enterprise AI at AMD. “To do that takes optimized compute and infrastructure that can adapt to different workloads. With AMD Helion, we are bringing AMD Epyc performance, open software and flexible rack designs together so our partners can build systems around customer needs and make efficient use of available power.” AMD said it plans to contribute its Helion specification to OCP, making it available to the community for further development and adoption. At present, the Helion agentic rack configurations are still under development with ecosystem partners, but AMD expects them to be available in November 2026 Ecosystem partners working with AMD for Helion’s launch include Cisco, Dell, Hon Hai Technology aka Foxconn , HPE, Lenovo, Supermicro, and Wiwynn.