Intel announces it will unveil the Xe GPU architecture and features at the Game Developers Conference.

Intel has unveiled plans to present the first detailed architecture specifications for its Xe GPU at a special session during GDC 2020, which will take place from March 16th till March 20th. The Xe architecture, scheduled for release later that year, will power products ranging from entry-level mobility and desktop platforms all the way to high-end HPC, workstation, and enthusiast gaming designs. The presentation will provide a detailed tour of the hardware architecture, explaining the structure of its building blocks and their performance implications, with special focus on how graphics engineers can best exploit the new Xe architecture. The session will also offer clear guidance on Xe architecture optimizations and introduce the innovative features of this new graphics architecture.

Intel's Xe GPU architecture is built as one scalable architecture powering various products through three distinct microarchitectures. Xe LP (Low Power) is rated at 5W-20W but can scale up to 50W, Xe HP (High Performance) covers the 75W-250W segment, and Xe HPC (High Performance Computing) aims even higher, delivering greater compute performance than the rest. This tiered approach allows Intel to address different market segments with the same foundational architecture while meeting specific power and performance requirements.

Intel has already demonstrated early Xe-based products, including the DG1, their first discrete graphics chip targeting entry-level mobility and desktop platforms. The company has been sampling SDV (software development vehicle) cards to ISVs worldwide to allow optimization of software around Intel's upcoming Xe graphics cards. More impressively, Intel has showcased Ponte Vecchio, described as an exascale-class HPC chip that will power the Aurora supercomputer in 2021 and utilizes the Xe graphics architecture with a second revision using Intel's advanced 7nm+ process node.

The Xe architecture is expected to deliver significant compute, geometry, and throughput improvements over current Gen9 and Gen11 graphics. Tiger Lake CPUs with Xe graphics are expected to deliver 2x the performance uplift over Gen 11 GPUs. Intel has indicated that the architecture will feature "powerful" new capabilities, with rumors suggesting technologies such as ray tracing. With this launch, Intel aims to introduce a third player into the graphics market, making the market more competitive while offering products across consumer, workstation, and HPC segments.