AMD launches Helios, its first rack AI system to rival Nvidia, adding Microsoft as newest buyer

AMD has launched Helios, its first rack-scale system (a large computing unit designed for data centers) for AI, which competes with Nvidia's similar systems and has attracted major customers including Microsoft, Meta, and OpenAI. The system combines AMD's own GPUs (graphics processing units, specialized chips for AI calculations), CPUs (central processing units, the main processors), networking, and software to offer what AMD claims is the lowest cost per token (the cost to process individual units of text in AI models). AMD will begin shipping Helios to customers later this year.