If you thought the Ryzen 9000 series was the peak of AMD’s innovation, you might want to hold onto your wallet. While the Ryzen 9 9950X3D2 (the rumored “refresh” chip) is currently grabbing headlines, the real monster is lurking further down the roadmap.
We are talking about Zen 6, codenamed “Medusa.”
Based on a flood of recent leaks, the potential flagship Ryzen 9 10950X3D is not just a generational tick. It is shaping up to be a fundamental architectural overhaul designed to do one thing: completely neutralize Intel’s upcoming Nova Lake.
Here is the deep dive on the processor that might be the “Endgame” for the AM5 platform.
The architecture: Saying goodbye to the “glue”
For years, Intel fans have jokingly called Ryzen chips “glued together” because of the Infinity Fabric connecting the dies on a standard circuit board substrate. With Zen 6, that joke dies.
Medusa is rumored to switch to a 2.5D Silicon Interconnect. Instead of copper traces on a PCB, the Core Complex Dies (CCDs) and the IO Die will likely be connected by microscopic silicon bridges (similar to Intel’s EMIB or advanced GPU packaging).
- Why this matters: This isn’t just fancy manufacturing. It drastically reduces the latency penalty that has plagued dual-CCD Ryzens. It effectively makes a chiplet processor behave much more like a monolithic one, allowing cores to “talk” to each other instantly.
The specs: 24 cores and “dual X3D”
The most aggressive rumor surrounding the 10950X3D is the core density. Zen 6 “Morpheus” cores are expected to be built on TSMC’s 2nm process, allowing AMD to pack more power into the same footprint.
- Core Count: 12 Cores per CCD (up from 8).
- Total Cores: 24 Cores / 48 Threads for the flagship.
The “cache monster” configuration
Intel’s upcoming Nova Lake is rumored to feature a massive “BLLC” (Big Last Level Cache). AMD’s response? A cache configuration that borders on absurd.
Leaks suggest a 288 MB Total Cache configuration. How do they get there? By finally standardizing Dual X3D dies.
- CCD 1: 48MB L3 + 96MB 3D V-Cache = 144 MB
- CCD 2: 48MB L3 + 96MB 3D V-Cache = 144 MB
- Total: 288 MB of ultra-fast memory directly on the processor.
The Office Analogy: Imagine the 10950X3D as a massive corporate headquarters. In previous generations (Zen 5), only the “East Wing” (CCD 1) had a high-speed filing room (V-Cache) attached. The “West Wing” had to walk across the street to get files.
With the 10950X3D, AMD is building a massive filing room directly onto both wings. Plus, they’ve replaced the street outside with a pneumatic tube system (the 2.5D interconnect) that shoots documents between wings instantly. Every single one of the 24 “workers” (cores) has immediate access to everything.
The secret weapon: RDNA 5 iGPU
Usually, integrated graphics on an X3D chip are an afterthought, just enough to boot Windows if your GPU dies. Zen 6 might change that.
Rumors indicate AMD is skipping RDNA 4 entirely for this chip and jumping straight to RDNA 5. While you will likely pair this CPU with a discrete RTX 5090 or Radeon RX 9000, having a potent RDNA 5 media engine on-die is massive for video editors and streamers who can offload encoding tasks to the iGPU, leaving the discrete card free for gaming.
Rumored specs sheet: Ryzen 9 10950X3D
| Feature | Specification (Rumored) |
| Architecture | Zen 6 “Morpheus” (Medusa) |
| Process Node | TSMC 2nm (N2) |
| Core Count | 24 Cores / 48 Threads (12 per CCD) |
| Cache Total | 288 MB (144 MB per CCD) |
| Interconnect | 2.5D Silicon Bridge |
| Graphics | RDNA 5 Integrated |
| Socket | AM5 |
| Est. Launch | Late 2026 / Early 2027 |
Performance and the competition
The “Golden Sample” rumors are wild, with whispers of 7 GHz clocks under exotic cooling. However, realistic expectations for a retail 10950X3D sit around 6.2 GHz to 6.3 GHz.
Combined with a projected 10-15% IPC uplift (Instructions Per Clock) from the new scheduler design, we are looking at a chip that could offer:
- Single-Thread: A fierce battle with Intel Nova Lake.
- Multi-Thread: Intel may win on raw core count (rumored 52 cores), but AMD’s 24 “Big” cores might scale better in real-world heavy loads.
The “Halo” rumor: Stacked on stacked?
There is a “wildcard” rumor about a premium “Halo” tier that stacks two layers of X3D cache for a total of 192MB per CCD. This is likely an Enterprise/EPYC technology that could trickle down if Intel’s Nova Lake is faster than expected. For now, treat this as a “break glass in case of emergency” feature for AMD.
Beyond Medusa: What comes next?
While the 10950X3D looks to be the ultimate upgrade for the current generation, the roadmap doesn’t end there. Whispers are already surfacing about the successor to Zen 6, a generation that could bring even more drastic changes to core counts and potentially introduce a new socket.
If you want to see what lies beyond Medusa and how AMD plans to follow up on this monster, check out our deep dive on AMD Zen 7 “Grimlock” details.
Conclusion: Is the AMD 10950x3D the ultimate CPU?
The Ryzen 10950X3D is shaping up to be the ultimate drop-in upgrade for the AM5 platform. If rumors hold, this will launch in late 2026 or early 2027, potentially marking the final and most powerful processor for your current motherboard before the industry shifts to AM6 and DDR6.
For those with a Ryzen 7000 or 9000 series processor, the 10950X3D appears to be the “endgame” upgrade we have all been waiting for.
