Can Granite 3.1 8B run on AMD Instinct MI250 128GB?

YES — Runs Great

C50Usable

Estimated from fit model

Granite 3.1 8B needs ~20.5 GB VRAM. AMD Instinct MI250 128GB has 128.0 GB. With Q4_K_M quantization, expect ~112 tok/s.

Runtime: llama.cppCapacity: RoomyBandwidth: HighStack: StandardBottleneck: Balanced

Operating mode

Choose the run profile you care about

Interactive favors responsiveness, while light API and scale-out lean harder on serving readiness. The fit stays the same, but the recommendation lens changes.

Current mode

Balanced

Balanced for general local use. Keeps the ranking neutral across personal and serving workflows.

Capabilities:

Select quantization to explore

Q4_K_M (Medium quality) — 20.5 GB, 112.0 tok/s, Runs well

20.5 GB required128.0 GB available

16% VRAM used

Fit status

Runs well

Decode

112.0 tok/s

TTFT

1729 ms

Safe context

128K

Memory

20.5 GB / 128.0 GB

Memory breakdown

Weights4.9 GB

KV Cache2.0 GB

Runtime0.9 GB

Headroom12.8 GB

See how fast it feels

See how fast it feelsGranite 3.1 8B on AMD Instinct MI250 128GB
1st promptCold start — includes initialization
>Write a Python function to sort a list
Here's a Python function that sorts a list using quicksort:

def quicksort(arr):
    if len(arr) <= 1:
        return arr
    pivot = arr[len(arr) // 2]
    left   = [x for x in arr if x < pivot]
    middle = [x for x in arr if x == pivot]
    right  = [x for x in arr if x > pivot]
    return quicksort(left) + middle + quicksort(right)

# Example usage
numbers = [3, 6, 8, 10, 1, 2, 1]
print(quicksort(numbers))  # [1, 1, 2, 3, 6, 8, 10]

The algorithm picks a pivot, partitions the list into smaller, equal, and larger elements, then recursively sorts each partition and concatenates the results.
2nd promptWarm — model ready, no init overhead
>Now add type hints and a docstring
def quicksort(arr: list[int]) -> list[int]:
    """Sort a list using the quicksort algorithm.

    Args:
        arr: List of integers to sort.

    Returns:
        A new sorted list.
    """
    if len(arr) <= 1:
        return arr
    pivot = arr[len(arr) // 2]
    left   = [x for x in arr if x < pivot]
    middle = [x for x in arr if x == pivot]
    right  = [x for x in arr if x > pivot]
    return quicksort(left) + middle + quicksort(right)

Added type hints for the input and return type, plus a Google-style docstring.
Estimated: 112.0 tok/s decode · 1.7s TTFT (warm) · 280 tok/s prefill

What limits this setup

This setup is broadly balanced for this model.

No major red flags

This recommendation has enough memory headroom and acceptable estimated speed for the selected workload.

Best improvement path

Performance by workload

Workload	Grade	Fit	Decode	TTFT	Context
Chat	C	Runs well	112.0 tok/s	943 ms	128K
Coding	C	Runs well	112.0 tok/s	1729 ms	128K
Agentic Coding	C	Runs well	112.0 tok/s	2514 ms	128K
Reasoning	C	Runs well	112.0 tok/s	2043 ms	128K
RAG	C	Runs well	112.0 tok/s	3143 ms	128K

Quantization options

How Granite 3.1 8B (8B params) fits at each quantization level on AMD Instinct MI250 128GB (128.0 GB usable).

Quant	Bits	VRAM	Quality	Fit
Q2_K	2	3.1 GB	Low	C43
Q3_K_S	3	3.9 GB	Low	C43
NVFP4	4

Get started

Copy-paste commands to run Granite 3.1 8B on your machine.

Run

ollama run granite3.1-dense

Upgrade options

Hardware that runs Granite 3.1 8B well

Mac Studio M3 Ultra 256GBBudget pick

256 GB Unified (+128)

Adds memory headroom for longer context windows and future model growth.112 tok/s decode

Adds memory headroom for longer context windows and future model growth.

~$6,999 MSRP

Frequently asked questions

Can AMD Instinct MI250 128GB run Granite 3.1 8B?

Yes, AMD Instinct MI250 128GB can run Granite 3.1 8B with a C grade (Runs well). Expected decode speed: 112.0 tok/s.

How much VRAM does Granite 3.1 8B need?

Granite 3.1 8B (8B parameters) requires approximately 20.5 GB of memory with Q4_K_M quantization.

What is the best quantization for Granite 3.1 8B?

The recommended quantization for Granite 3.1 8B is Q4_K_M, which balances quality and memory efficiency.

What speed will Granite 3.1 8B run at on AMD Instinct MI250 128GB?

On AMD Instinct MI250 128GB, Granite 3.1 8B achieves approximately 112.0 tokens per second decode speed with a time-to-first-token of 1729ms using Q4_K_M quantization.

Can AMD Instinct MI250 128GB run Granite 3.1 8B for coding?

For coding workloads, Granite 3.1 8B on AMD Instinct MI250 128GB receives a C grade with 112.0 tok/s and 128K context.

What context window can Granite 3.1 8B use on AMD Instinct MI250 128GB?

On AMD Instinct MI250 128GB, Granite 3.1 8B can safely use up to 128K tokens of context. The model's official context limit is 128K, but available memory constrains the safe maximum.

See all results for AMD Instinct MI250 128GB See all hardware for Granite 3.1 8B

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