AMD’s telco solutions test lab with VIAVI underscores its leadership in 5G and its growing ecosystem partnerships, including Nokia.
AMD’s investments in 5G are part of its broader strategy to expand its footprint in the data center and networking markets, where demand for high-performance computing and connectivity is growing rapidly. With the advent of the 5G era, Communication Service Providers (CSPs) need to modernize their platforms and 5G services offer new opportunities. For example, innovative new use cases for CSPs such as video streaming, smart cities, and data analytics may be enabled by the scale of their networks and 5G services.
However, organizations must balance modernization goals, performance gains, and cost and environmental efficiencies by getting more performance per core, lowering power consumption, lowering management costs, and occupying less space.
To support this growing demand, AMD has invested in 5G technologies and worked on network infrastructure, including SoC solutions for mobile devices and high-performance graphics technology for use in 5G base stations.
Consistent with these efforts, AMD announced it will expand support for its growing 5G partner ecosystem, spanning from core to radio access networks (RAN) applications, providing additional new testing capabilities and introducing new 5G products. AMD’s wireless telco partner ecosystem has more than doubled over the past year, aided by the integration of AMD and Xilinx product lines and the establishment of the new telco solutions test lab in partnership with VIAVI.
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The Telco Solutions test lab is essential for telecom operators and solution providers to test, validate and scale computing resources to meet the growing demands of RAN and edge-to-core. The lab supports end-to-end solutions, including hardware and software, leveraging AMD’s latest processors, adaptive SoCs, SmartNICs, FPGAs, and DPUs to optimize performance and power efficiency.
To support this effort, VIAVI’s end-to-end test suite was selected to provide network test solutions to analyze, develop, and validate the impact of real-world conditions throughout the telecommunications network. The lab enables traffic simulation and generation across Core, CU/DU, Edge and RAN, leveraging both current and future AMD technologies to enable functional and performance testing that meets the current and future needs of the ecosystem.
5G investments for high-performance computing with AMD
AMD’s 4G/5G Zynq UltraScale+ RFSoC and MPSoC radio technology has become widespread, enabling new integrated designs for remote radios and creating new business opportunities. To further expand its portfolio, AMD is introducing two new RFSoCs: the Zynq UltraScale+ ZU63DR and ZU64DR devices.
These RFSoCs enable the deployment of cost-effective and energy-efficient 4G/5G radios in emerging global markets, including rural areas and outdoor areas. The ZU63DR is designed for entry-level 4T4R and dual-band O-RAN radio unit (O-RU) applications, while the ZU64DR targets 8T8R O-RU applications with the 3GPP Split-8 option.
Both devices are expected to go into full production in Q2 2023 and will be unveiled at Mobile World Congress (MWC) Barcelona 2023. Salil Raje, senior vice president and general manager of AMD’s Adaptive and Embedded Computing Group, expressed pride in the company’s advancements in the wireless market and collaboration with over 15 wireless ecosystem partners.
“With our focus on increasing 5G deployments around the world, the new AMD Zynq UltraScale+ RFSoCs are exceptionally cost-effective and energy efficient, making them ideal for emerging global markets, including rural and outdoor deployments,” added Raje.
AMD is no stranger to the APAC region
AMD has a significant presence in the Asia Pacific (APAC) 5G telecom market, where the total addressable market capitalization is estimated at $550.1 billion by 2030, driven by the rapid deployment and adoption of 5G infrastructure and technology in the region.
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Last December, AMD worked with Viettel High Tech, a member of Viettel Group, to successfully conduct a 5G cellular network field trial using AMD Xilinx Zynq UltraScale+ MPSoC devices. Viettel High Tech is the largest telecom operator in Vietnam, serving over 130 million mobile subscribers and has a long history of using AMD wireless technology in previous 4G deployments. AMD is now the exclusive radio unit (RU) silicon supplier for Viettel’s own 5G radio development.
Upon successful completion of the first field trial, Zynq MPSoCs will be expanded to include an additional 300 Macro 8T8R base stations and 900 5G 8T8R Macro radios. Viettel has also selected the Zynq UltraScale+ MPSoC for its first-generation 64T64R massive MIMO radio, which is currently being optimized for field testing. To provide industry-leading integration and higher performance, Viettel plans to include Zynq UltraScale+ RFSoC devices in the next generation of radios.
In addition to Viettel, AMD is working with Nokia to expand its telecom ecosystem. The two companies have announced a collaboration utilizing 4th Gen AMD EPYC processor-based servers to deliver Nokia Cloud RAN solutions and help communications service providers achieve their energy efficiency goals. AMD and Nokia recognize the challenges operators face when it comes to reducing rising energy costs and the need to reduce carbon emissions in both their network edge and core operations.
Muhammad Zulhusni
As a tech writer, Zul focuses on topics such as cloud computing, cybersecurity and disruptive technologies in the enterprise industry. He has experience hosting webinars and presenting content on video, as well as a background in network technology.
