Intel Arc A580 vs NVIDIA Tesla M40 24 GB Comparison

Intel Arc A580 vs NVIDIA Tesla M40 24 GB: the recorded data shows a generational gap expressed in raw compute and API support. The Arc A580, built on a 6 nm process with the Xe-HPG architecture, dominates both shared benchmark tests, while the Tesla M40 24 GB, a Maxwell 2.0 product from 2015, retains advantages only in memory capacity and legacy form factor. This comparison hinges on interpreting those priorities: modern gaming and general compute versus high-capacity, headless acceleration.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The database records two head-to-head tests, and the Intel Arc A580 wins both. In Geekbench OpenCL, the Arc A580 scores 91,657 points against the Tesla M40's 37,439 points. That is a delta of 144.8%, meaning the Arc A580 delivers more than double the OpenCL performance. In Geekbench Vulkan, the gap narrows but remains decisive: the Arc A580 scores 79,381, while the Tesla M40 scores 45,975, a 72.7% advantage for Intel.

These results align with the average benchmark scores. The Arc A580 averages 57,756 points across its recorded tests, placing it in the 87th percentile of all GPUs. The Tesla M40 averages 41,707 points, sitting in the 83rd percentile. The percentile difference (87 vs 83) is modest, but the raw score gap is substantial: 57,756 versus 41,707 is a 38.5% higher average for Intel.

Looking at the nearest rivals in the database clarifies the context. The Arc A580's average score sits within 1.1% of the AMD Radeon RX 6950 XT (58,392), just 0.7% above the AMD Radeon RX 9070 GRE (57,367), and 0.6% below the AMD Radeon RX 5600 OEM (58,085). The Tesla M40's average is 1.3% above the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Ti (41,187), 2% above the AMD Radeon Pro 5300 (40,870), and 2.4% below the AMD Radeon RX 7650 GRE (42,723). The Intel card competes with modern mid-range and older high-end parts, while the NVIDIA card sits near older workstation and mid-tier gaming GPUs.

The FP32 compute figures reinforce the benchmark story. The Arc A580 delivers 12.29 TFLOPS, while the Tesla M40 provides 6.832 TFLOPS. That is roughly an 80% higher FP32 throughput for Intel. The texture rate follows suit: 384.0 GTexel/s for Intel versus 213.5 GTexel/s for NVIDIA. Pixel rate also favors Intel at 192.0 GPixel/s versus 106.8 GPixel/s. Memory bandwidth, however, flips: the Arc A580 has 512.0 GB/s, but the Tesla M40 has only 288.4 GB/s. The Intel card still leads in bandwidth by 77.5%, despite the Tesla's larger bus width (384-bit vs 256-bit) because of the faster GDDR6 memory.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear winner for almost any compute workload: the Intel Arc A580. It wins both head-to-head tests, has a higher average benchmark score, higher percentiles, and superior raw throughput in FP32, texture, and pixel rates. The only significant advantage for the Tesla M40 24 GB is its memory capacity: 24 GB versus 8 GB. That is a threefold difference, which matters for workloads that require large datasets resident in VRAM, such as certain machine learning inference or rendering scenes that exceed 8 GB.

For gaming, the Arc A580 is the only sensible choice from this data alone. It supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) versus the Tesla's DirectX 12 (12_1), includes 24 ray tracing cores (the Tesla has none), and has display outputs (1x HDMI 2.1, 3x DisplayPort 2.0) while the Tesla has no outputs. The Tesla M40 is a compute accelerator without any video output, so it cannot drive a monitor. The Arc A580 also runs at a higher boost clock (2000 MHz vs 1112 MHz) and has a lower TDP (175 W vs 250 W), suggesting better efficiency per watt, although the database does not record efficiency metrics.

For professional compute, the Tesla M40's 24 GB is its sole selling point. The data shows it is 38.5% slower on average, has no Vulkan score above 46k, and uses a 28 nm process with a much larger die (601 mm² vs 406 mm²) but fewer transistors (8,000 million vs 21,700 million). The Tesla is end-of-life, while the Intel is active. The verdict: choose the Arc A580 unless the workload strictly requires more than 8 GB of VRAM, in which case the Tesla M40's larger memory pool is the only rational reason to select it.

Architecture Differences

The architectures are from different eras. The Intel Arc A580 uses Xe-HPG, built on a 6 nm TSMC process, with a die size of 406 mm² and 21,700 million transistors. This yields a transistor density of 53.4 million per mm². The NVIDIA Tesla M40 uses Maxwell 2.0, on a 28 nm process, with a 601 mm² die and only 8,000 million transistors, giving a density of 13.3 million per mm². The Intel chip packs more than 2.7 times the transistors into a smaller area.

The Intel architecture includes 24 ray tracing cores, a feature entirely absent from the Maxwell 2.0 design (the Tesla lists no RT cores). It also supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2), while the Tesla only reaches DirectX 12 (12_1). Both support OpenGL 4.6 and Vulkan 1.4, so API compatibility for those older interfaces is equal.

The memory architectures differ fundamentally. The Arc A580 uses 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus, achieving 512.0 GB/s. The Tesla M40 uses 24 GB of GDDR5 on a 384-bit bus, achieving 288.4 GB/s. The Tesla's wider bus cannot compensate for the slower memory type. The clock speeds also diverge: the Arc runs at 1700 MHz base and 2000 MHz boost, while the Tesla runs at 948 MHz base and 1112 MHz boost. The Intel card's boost clock is nearly double the Tesla's base clock.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ in every major specification except shading units, TMUs, and ROPs. Both have 3072 shading units, 192 texture mapping units, and 96 raster output units. The similarities end there.

• Process node: Intel is 6 nm, NVIDIA is 28 nm.
• Transistors: Intel has 21,700 million, NVIDIA has 8,000 million.
• Die size: Intel is 406 mm², NVIDIA is 601 mm².
• Transistor density: Intel is 53.4M / mm², NVIDIA is 13.3M / mm².
• Base clock: Intel is 1700 MHz, NVIDIA is 948 MHz.
• Boost clock: Intel is 2000 MHz, NVIDIA is 1112 MHz.
• Memory clock: Intel is 2000 MHz (16 Gbps effective), NVIDIA is 1502 MHz (6 Gbps effective).
• Memory size: Intel is 8 GB, NVIDIA is 24 GB.
• Memory type: Intel is GDDR6, NVIDIA is GDDR5.
• Memory bus: Intel is 256-bit, NVIDIA is 384-bit.
• Memory bandwidth: Intel is 512.0 GB/s, NVIDIA is 288.4 GB/s.
• FP32 performance: Intel is 12.29 TFLOPS, NVIDIA is 6.832 TFLOPS.
• FP16 performance: Intel is 24.58 TFLOPS (2:1), NVIDIA has none recorded.
• Pixel rate: Intel is 192.0 GPixel/s, NVIDIA is 106.8 GPixel/s.
• Texture rate: Intel is 384.0 GTexel/s, NVIDIA is 213.5 GTexel/s.
• TDP: Intel is 175 W, NVIDIA is 250 W.
• Power connectors: Intel uses 2x 8-pin, NVIDIA uses 8-pin EPS.
• Suggested PSU: Intel is 450 W, NVIDIA is 600 W.
• Bus interface: Intel is PCIe 4.0 x16, NVIDIA is PCIe 3.0 x16.
• Display outputs: Intel has 1x HDMI 2.1 and 3x DisplayPort 2.0, NVIDIA has none.
• Production status: Intel is Active, NVIDIA is End-of-life.
• Release date: Intel is October 2023, NVIDIA is November 2015.
• Length: NVIDIA is 267 mm (10.5 inches), Intel has no recorded length.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU has higher raw compute performance in the database?

A: The Intel Arc A580, with 12.29 TFLOPS FP32 versus the NVIDIA Tesla M40's 6.832 TFLOPS. The Intel card also leads in texture rate (384.0 GTexel/s vs 213.5 GTexel/s) and pixel rate (192.0 GPixel/s vs 106.8 GPixel/s).

Q: Does the NVIDIA Tesla M40 have any benchmark advantage?

A: No. In the two head-to-head tests, the Intel Arc A580 wins both: Geekbench OpenCL (91,657 vs 37,439) and Geekbench Vulkan (79,381 vs 45,975). The Tesla M40's only advantage is its 24 GB memory capacity.

Q: Can the NVIDIA Tesla M40 be used for gaming with a monitor?

A: No. The Tesla M40 has no display outputs, while the Intel Arc A580 provides 1x HDMI 2.1 and 3x DisplayPort 2.0. The Tesla also lacks ray tracing cores, which the Arc A580 includes (24 RT cores).

Q: How do their memory bandwidth figures compare?

A: The Intel Arc A580 has 512.0 GB/s from GDDR6 on a 256-bit bus. The Tesla M40 has 288.4 GB/s from GDDR5 on a 384-bit bus. Intel leads by 77.5% despite a narrower bus.

Q: Which card is more power-efficient according to the data?

A: The Intel Arc A580 has a lower TDP (175 W vs 250 W) and a lower suggested PSU (450 W vs 600 W), while delivering higher performance. The Tesla M40 requires more power and an EPS connector, whereas Intel uses 2x 8-pin.

Q: What is the production status of each card?

A: The Intel Arc A580 is listed as Active, with a release date of October 2023. The NVIDIA Tesla M40 is marked End-of-life, released in November 2015.

Where Each One Wins

The Intel Arc A580 wins in every benchmark category recorded: OpenCL, Vulkan, and the aggregate average. It also wins on raw specs: FP32, FP16, texture rate, pixel rate, bandwidth, clock speeds, and power efficiency (lower TDP, lower PSU requirement). It is the clear choice for gaming, modern API support, and any workload that fits within 8 GB of VRAM. Its ray tracing capability and display outputs make it a complete graphics solution.

The NVIDIA Tesla M40 24 GB wins in exactly one category: memory capacity. With 24 GB versus 8 GB, it offers three times the VRAM. This makes it potentially useful for workloads that exceed 8 GB, such as large machine learning models or complex 3D rendering scenes that must stay resident in memory. However, the data shows it is slower in every measured test, has no display outputs, no ray tracing, and is end-of-life. Its 384-bit bus and 288.4 GB/s bandwidth are insufficient to compensate for the lower compute throughput.

The practical split is clear: for interactive graphics, gaming, or general compute under 8 GB, the Arc A580 is the superior product. For memory-bound tasks that require more than 8 GB and can tolerate slower compute, the Tesla M40's larger framebuffer is the only reason to consider it. The benchmark results do not favor the Tesla in any speed test, so the choice reduces to a simple trade-off between capacity and performance.