Intel is planning to reintroduce AVX-512 support for consumer processors

In 2021, Intel introduced its first hybrid architecture Alder Lake processor, which, akin to its predecessor Rocket Lake, supports both AVX-256 and AVX-512 instruction sets. However, Intel subsequently backpedaled, disabling AVX-512 support on new batches of Alder Lake chips and even marking distinctions on the integrated heat spreader (IHS). Concurrently, Intel mandated that motherboard manufacturers revoke related support and refrain from enabling it via BIOS.

Intel retained support exclusively for its Xeon processors, and in the consumer market, the latest Raptor Lake does not support AVX-512 either. In contrast, AMD’s Ryzen 7000 series, based on the Zen 4 architecture, fully supports the AVX-512 instruction set, resulting in superior performance in specific workloads, such as the PlayStation 3 emulator RPCS3.

According to Twitter user @never_released Intel is planning to reintroduce AVX-512 support for consumer processors, albeit requiring time to identify an appropriate method of implementation. Rumors suggest that due to certain support limitations, Intel is unable to provide full support and may consequently rename it, for instance, “AVX-256 Plus.”

Reports indicate that Intel’s next-generation Crestmont architecture, employed in the efficiency cores for Meteor Lake and Sierra Forest chips, does not support the AVX-512 instruction set. Support is anticipated only in the subsequent Skymont architecture efficiency cores, which will be utilized in Arrow Lake. Nevertheless, Intel might have other alternatives, such as enabling AVX-512 support when efficiency cores are disabled, mirroring the initial situation with Alder Lake.