AMD RDNA 5: More VRAM, Greater Ambitions

According to the latest leaks from Moore’s Law Is Dead (MLID), AMD is preparing to launch its next-generation graphics cards based on the RDNA 5 architecture (possibly branded as UDNA). The main focus appears to be a significant increase in VRAM — up to 36GB of GDDR7 — aimed at competing with NVIDIA’s upcoming flagship, the GeForce RTX 6090.

Leaked Lineup: What to Expect

RX 10900 XT (Flagship Model)

154 Compute Units (CUs)
36GB GDDR7 memory with 384-bit interface
Memory speed of 36 Gbps, offering 1.7–1.728 TB/s bandwidth
Power consumption (TDP) around 380W
Targeted to compete with NVIDIA RTX 6090

RX 10700 XT

64 CUs, 18GB GDDR7, 192-bit bus
Expected to rival RTX 5080 or RTX 4090
TDP approximately 275W

RX 10070 GRE

48 CUs, 15GB GDDR7, 160-bit interface
Aimed at the midrange segment, close to RTX 4080

RX 10060 XT

44 CUs, 12GB GDDR7, 128-bit
Comparable to RTX 5060 Ti – RTX 5070

There are also mentions of professional-grade chips with up to 184 CUs and 128GB of VRAM, more suitable for HPC or AI applications than gaming.

Rationale and Expectations

AMD seems to be moving away from the outdated baseline of 8GB VRAM, responding to growing demands of modern games and software.
GDDR7 is chosen over GDDR6, offering higher bandwidth and improved efficiency.
RDNA 5 is rumored to deliver 5–10% better IPC (instructions per clock) compared to RDNA 4.

Timeline and Market Position

The RDNA 4 and Radeon RX 9000 series were officially introduced at CES 2025 (January), targeting the mainstream market.
Leaks predict that RDNA 5 GPUs will arrive between late 2026 and early 2027, including volume launches for models like RX 10070 and RX 10900.

Potential Strengths and Open Questions

Aspect	Description
Performance	Flagship models are rumored to offer 2.6× the performance of RTX 4080.
VRAM	Ranges from 12GB to 36GB — a major leap from RDNA 4.
Power Efficiency	~380W for top-tier models — demanding, but expected at this performance.
Architecture	Features GDDR7, TSMC 3nm node, improved IPC, and possibly L3 cache stacking.
Leak Reliability	All specs are based on leaks; MLID warns these could still change.

Conclusion

It seems AMD is finally addressing gamers’ long-standing concerns over limited VRAM and lagging high-end performance. The upcoming RDNA 5 lineup could reestablish AMD in the premium GPU segment, where RDNA 4 was notably absent. While power consumption may be high and leaks remain unconfirmed, the potential introduction of 36GB GDDR7 models delivering up to 2–3× performance improvements signals renewed competition with NVIDIA.

Once AMD officially unveils RDNA 5, we’ll see how close these leaks are to reality. But even now, it promises to be a significant leap forward.