AMD Confirm 2nd Gen RDNA Architecture Will Debut in 2020

With the recent release of the AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT, I think it’s pretty fair to say (although I daresay some of you will disagree) that Team Red currently has a pretty decent range of graphics cards. Admittedly, with the 5700 XT only really tip-toeing into 2070 territory, they’re clearly still behind Nvidia’s best.

It does, therefore, beg the question as to when (or if) AMD will release anything that can really take on the best that Nvidia has to offer. Well, we got our first indication that something was on the horizon when CEO Dr. Lisa Su confirmed that ‘Big Navi’ was on the way.

In a report via TechPowerUp, however, she has now also followed up those comments by confirming something potentially a lot more interesting. Namely, that their 2nd-generation RDNA GPU architecture will make its debut before the end of this year!

AMD 2nd-Gen RDNA Architecture

In terms of the 2nd-generation RDNA architecture, exactly what it will represent is a huge cause of speculation. Some, for example, believe that it will make its debut when AMD launches their high-tier 5XXX graphics cards. Others, however, suspect that it may represent a later release tier and will be the first AMD GPUs to feature hardware-based ray tracing support.

The most interesting theory we’ve heard is that AMD may use it to refresh its entire 5XXX range. This includes their higher-tier cards that would initially release on the current platform. It would, essentially, be AMD pulling an Nvidia and going ‘Super’.

The short version is, we don’t know. What Dr. Lisa Su has said is (in all honesty) a little vague to pin anything specific down.

“In 2019 we launched our new architecture in GPUs, it’s the RDNA architecture, and that was the Navi-based products. You should expect those will be refreshed in 2020, and we will have our new next-generation RDNA architecture that will be part our 2020 lineup.”

What Do We Think?

So, the only thing we know as a fact is that 2nd-gen RDNA is coming and it will land this year. Beyond that, however, speculation will undoubtedly be rife as to what form it may take.

The only positive we can take, however, is that with AMD hosting their annual Investor Day in March, we should get a much clearer picture as to what the future holds then!

What do you think? – Let us know in the comments!