ODIN-Based CPU-GPU Architecture with Replay-Driven Simulation and Emulation

By Nij Dorairaj ¹, Debabrata Chatterjee ¹, Hong Wang ¹, Hong Jiang ¹, Alankar Saxena ¹, Altug Koker ¹, Thiam Ern Lim ¹, Cathrane Teoh ¹, Chuan Yin Loo ¹, Bishara Shomar ², Anthony Lester ^3 
1 Intel Corporation, 
² Intel Corporation/Nvidia Corp, 
³ Synopsys Inc 

Abstract

Integration of CPU and GPU technologies is a key enabler for modern AI and graphics workloads, combining control-oriented processing with massive parallel compute capability. As systems evolve toward chiplet-based architectures, pre-silicon validation of tightly coupled CPU-GPU subsystems becomes increasingly challenging due to complex validation framework setup, large design scale, high concurrency, non-deterministic execution, and intricate protocol interactions at chiplet boundaries, often resulting in long integration cycles. This paper presents a replay-driven validation methodology developed during the integration of a CPU subsystem, multiple Xe GPU cores, and a configurable Network-on-Chip (NoC) within a foundational SoC building block targeting the ODIN integrated chiplet architecture. By leveraging deterministic waveform capture and replay across both simulation and emulation using a single design database, complex GPU workloads and protocol sequences can be reproduced reliably at the system level. This approach significantly accelerates debug, improves integration confidence, and enables end-to-end system boot and workload execution within a single quarter, demonstrating the effectiveness of replay-based validation as a scalable methodology for chiplet-based systems.

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