AMD’s new Ryzen Pro processors bring AI to laptops and desktops

AMD has introduced the latest in its lineup of professional-oriented processors, targeting both laptop and desktop users. On the laptop side, the company introduced the Ryzen Pro 8040 series, while the desktop side is getting the Ryzen Pro 8000 series. The names sound familiar, though they’re explained by AMD’s naming schemes for laptops and desktops being different.

Just like the regular non-Pro versions of all these processors, the big new headlining feature across the board is Ryzen AI, with AMD promising up to 16TOPS of AI performance from the NPU alone on its top-of-the-line processors. Of course, what sets these models apart from the non-Pro versions is that they come with certain security and management features that make these processors more suited for business scenarios where IT administrator need to set up and manage multiple machines.

AMD Ryzen Pro 8040 series for laptops

Starting with the laptop side of things, we have the AMD Ryzen 8040 Pro series, based on the Zen 4 architecture with a 4nm manufacturing process. They promise up to 30% more CPU performance, and 72% faster performance for video conferencing compared to the Intel Core Ultra 7 165U. AMD is also boasting these models as being some of the first to feature Wi-Fi 7 technology built-in.

The lineup of processors is essentially the same as the non-Pro versions that are already available in various laptops, but of course they’re geared towards business users, and you’ll find them in business laptops from HP, Lenovo, and other OEMs starting this quarter.

As for devices that will feature these processors, you can expect to see laptops from HP’s EliteBook 805 series G11, 605 Series G11, and the ProBook 405 Series G11, plus some of HP’s ZBook Power and Firefly G11 series. Lenovo will feature the new processors in the ThinkPad T14 Gen 5, among others.

AMD Ryzen Pro 8000 series for desktops

Over on the desktop side of things, AMD introduced the Pro variants of its existing Ryzen 8000 series APUs. Keep in mind that AMD’s next-gen Ryzen CPUs don’t exist yet, so these aren’t based on the Zen 5 architecture. These are also based on Zen 4 and a 4nm process, as well as integrated Ryzen graphics promising up to 47% more performance compared to Intel’s Core i7-14700.

The processors also support DDR5 RAM and PCIe 4.0, along with Wi-Fi 7 on select models. The lineup includes the following models:

Much like the laptop processors, the AMD Ryzen Pro 8000 series for desktops will be available in systems and through channel partners in the second quarter of this year. You can expect to see it in systems including Lenovo’s ThinkCentre M75 series of workstations, but there will likely be more options over time.