{
  "id": 376880,
  "title": "Two variants of Nvidia's RTX Spark show up on Geekbench, revealing a cut-down 18-core model — Full 20-core beats most x86 mobile chips across multi-core and single-core tests",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/09/two-variants-of-nvidias-rtx-spark-show-up-on-geekbench-revealing-a",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-08-09T13:20:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Tom's Hardware",
    "slug": "tom-s-hardware",
    "url": "https://www.tomshardware.com/pc-components/cpus/two-variants-of-nvidias-rtx-spark-show-up-on-geekbench-revealing-a-cut-down-18-core-model-full-20-core-beats-most-x86-mobile-chips-across-multi-core-and-single-core-tests"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Geekbench listings for Nvidia's upcoming RTX Spark laptop superchip indicate the existence of a second, reduced SKU with 18 CPU cores. Both SKUs perform similarly, with the 20-core SKU scoring higher in multi-core tests, while the 18-core SKU remains within 1% of the 20-core part in single-core tests.\n\nWhen compared to other Windows-running SoCs, these multi-core scores place both RTX Spark SKUs among the top performers. However, the 20-core model still trails behind Apple's M3 Max and M4 Pro in multi-core performance. In single-core tests, the 20-core RTX Spark lags behind Apple's M4 Pro, and the 18-core variant falls short of even Apple's base M3.\n\nDespite these single-core limitations, Nvidia's RTX Spark shows promise in multi-core performance. As the hardware matures and driver optimization improves, Nvidia is expected to challenge the top Windows machines in performance.",
  "summary": "The 20-core SKU of the RTX Spark that we've known to exist for a long time scored 2,570 points in the single-core test and 23,126 points in the multi-core test. The second, 18-core cut-down SKU scored 2,541 points in the single-core test while its multi-core was 21,776 points.",
  "key_points": [
    "Nvidia's RTX Spark has two variants: 18-core and 20-core",
    "20-core SKU outperforms most x86 mobile chips in multi-core tests",
    "18-core variant remains within 1% of 20-core in single-core tests"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Techmeme",
        "title": "Meta releases Muse Glimmer, a new open-weight model, and will release an open-weight version of its most advanced model, Muse Spark 1.2, in the coming weeks (Meghan Bobrowsky/Wall Street Journal)",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/10/meta-releases-muse-glimmer-a-new-open-weight-model-and-will-release",
        "published": "2026-08-10T10:14:25.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}