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[News] Loongson Unveils 3A6000 CPU, Aims to Match Intel’s Advanced Process in Next Phase


2023-11-29 Semiconductors editor

Loongson Technology Corp Ltd, unveiled its latest domestic CPU, Loongson 3A6000, on November 28th in Beijing, China. Notably, this CPU is entirely based on Chinese in-house design, free from reliance on any foreign licensed technology. During the product launch, Weiwu Hu, the chairman of Loongson, announced that next phase will utilize mature processes to achieve performance comparable to Intel’s advanced process, reported by CTEE.

Loongson 3A6000 adopts a China domestic instruction set architecture(ISA), showcasing China’s capability to self-develop a new generation CPU, as reported by CCTV News. This CPU can run various cross-platform applications, catering to the needs of diverse large and complex desktop scenarios.

The release of the Loongson 3A6000 signifies a pivotal milestone, highlighting China’s achievement in self sufficiency and product performance, bringing it on par with international mainstream products.

According to Mydrivers.com, test results indicate that the overall performance of the Loongson 3A6000 processor is comparable to Intel’s 10th Gen Core quad-core processor launched in 2020. Notably, the Loongson 3A6000 is built on the self-developed ISA “LoongArch,” showcasing complete independence from foreign licensing, from top-level structure to ISA and application binary interface (ABI) standards.

In terms of core performance, the Loongson 3A6000 boasts a main frequency of 2.5GHz, supports 128-bit vector extension (Loongson SIMD eXtension, LSX), and 256-bit advanced vector extension (Loongson Advanced SIMD eXtension, LASX). It also supports simultaneous multi-threading technology (SMT2), featuring a total of 8 logical cores on the entire chip.

Hu highlighted that the 3A6000 has charted a path based on mature processes, optimizing performance through design. This achievement marks comparable performance with Intel and AMD under relatively weaker process conditions. The next step involves continuing to use mature processes to achieve performance levels on par with Intel’s advanced technology.

Regarding the upcoming Loongson 3B6000, Hu mentioned during the third-quarter earnings briefing that Loongson is strategically focused on enhancing efficiency, aiming to reach or approach the performance level of Apple’s CPU for each GHz.
(Image: Jiwei)