AMD Launches Helios Rack and 6th Gen EPYC CPUs

During the Advancing AI 2026 event in San Francisco, Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. launched the Helios rackscale solution and the 6th Generation EPYC "Venice" processors. CEO Lisa Su announced that Helios is in full production with orders ready to ship. The Helios platform integrates Instinct MI455X GPUs, Pensando networking, and ROCm software into an open architecture supporting up to 72 GPUs for large-scale AI training and inference.

The new EPYC 9006 series is the first high-performance computing product to enter volume production using TSMC's 2nm process technology and the Zen 6 architecture. The flagship SP7 variant offers up to 256 cores and 512 threads, with AMD claiming up to 2.2x higher throughput than NVIDIA's Arm-based Vera CPUs. Shipping for SP7 and SP8 models is scheduled for Q4 2026 and the first half of 2027, respectively.

Hardware partners including Supermicro, MiTAC Computing Technology Corp., and MSI introduced new server portfolios powered by these processors. Supermicro debuted the H15 portfolio, while MiTAC launched liquid-cooled racks featuring up to 96 Instinct MI355X GPUs. To support the ecosystem, AMI released validated Rack Manager software and firmware. Cloud provider Vultr announced it is among the first to offer the MI455X GPU and Helios solution, with pre-orders opening in Q4 for deployments between 2027 and 2028. AMD currently controls 46 percent of the data center CPU market and projects its total compute addressable market will reach $2 trillion by 2030.