Time will tell if the term takes off, but AMD wants to create a new product category called the “Agent Computer.”
The chipmaker points out that while people mainly access chatbots and AI tools online, some also run AI agents locally on their own hardware, as evidenced by OpenClaw, an open-source project that runs on a laptop or mini PC. However, for the best performance, AMD says its latest AI Max processors, including the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395, are ready to address the niche, but potentially growing market.
“Powerful agents need powerful compute, and that’s what AMD does. They need a new class of machine,” the company wrote in a blog post. “A personal computer runs your apps. An Agent Computer runs your agents so they can run the apps for you. That is the shift.”
(Credit: AMD)
The blog post envisions a near future in which people run agents locally to help them complete a wide range of tasks throughout the day, acting as a dutiful assistant.
“Not every AI workload belongs in a hyperscaler’s data center,” AMD adds, alluding to online services such as ChatGPT or Google’s Gemini. “People and businesses want control over their data, affordable AI they can use every day without limits, and the confidence that their AI works for them. That makes local, privacy-centric, always-on agentic compute a real and growing need for consumers, creators, developers, startups, and SMEs (small and medium enterprises).”
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The post directs users to check out AMD’s “Agent Computers for Windows,” which include the HP Z2 Mini G1a, a compact desktop configurable with the Ryzen AI Max+ 395 chip and a whopping 128GB of RAM. We reviewed it last month and found it to offer some impressive, although pricey, computing suited for AI development. Our review model costs $3,309.
(Credit: AMD)
Another product shown is Corsair’s AI Workstation 300 Desktop PC, which currently starts at $2,199, and Framework Computer’s Framework Desktop with the Ryzen Max+ 395 model starting at $1,959. Both can also be configured with 128GB of RAM. The high amount of memory means the PCs can run more advanced large language models reaching 200 billion parameters in size, according to AMD.
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AMD talked up the new product category days before rival Nvidia kicks off GTC, its annual AI developer conference. Nvidia will no doubt discuss its roadmap for future AI chips for data centers. But there’s a good chance the GPU maker will debut hardware that can also run AI models locally at home or in the office.
Last year, Nvidia began selling the DGX Spark, a $3,999 mini PC that also supports up to 128GB of RAM. Its partners, including Dell, developed their own versions built using the same GB10 Nvidia chip. A more powerful, larger DGX Station is slated to arrive this spring.
So it’s possible AMD is talking up Agent Computers to counter Nvidia’s GTC announcements. To promote its own offerings, AMD created a site dedicated to the new product category, which includes a guide on running OpenClaw on AMD Ryzen AI Max+ Processors and the company’s Radeon GPUs.
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Michael Kan
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I’ve been a journalist for over 15 years. I got my start as a schools and cities reporter in Kansas City and joined PCMag in 2017, where I cover satellite internet services, cybersecurity, PC hardware, and more. I’m currently based in San Francisco, but previously spent over five years in China, covering the country’s technology sector.
Since 2020, I’ve covered the launch and explosive growth of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service, writing 600+ stories on availability and feature launches, but also the regulatory battles over the expansion of satellite constellations, fights with rival providers like AST SpaceMobile and Amazon, and the effort to expand into satellite-based mobile service. I’ve combed through FCC filings for the latest news and driven to remote corners of California to test Starlink’s cellular service.
I also cover cyber threats, from ransomware gangs to the emergence of AI-based malware. Earlier this year, the FTC forced Avast to pay consumers $16.5 million for secretly harvesting and selling their personal information to third-party clients, as revealed in my joint investigation with Motherboard.
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