Would CUDA be a better path than Intel Arc A730M 12GB for Nous Dolphin 13B?

Often yes, if your goal is the easiest setup and the widest runtime support. Intel can offer attractive memory capacity, but CUDA still tends to win on tooling maturity, guides, kernels, and model coverage for local AI.

Can Nous Dolphin 13B run on Intel Arc A730M 12GB?

Q: What should I upgrade first if Nous Dolphin 13B feels slow on Intel Arc A730M 12GB?

Add more VRAM headroom. The first useful upgrade is more dedicated VRAM so you can fit the model without shrinking context or dropping to a much lower quant.

NO — Won't Fit

F0Won't run

Estimated from fit model

Nous Dolphin 13B needs ~24.0 GB but Intel Arc A730M 12GB only has 12.0 GB. Try a smaller quantization or lighter model.

Runtime: OllamaCapacity: No fitBandwidth: LowStack: BasicBottleneck: Memory capacity

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

Q5_K_M (High quality) — 24.0 GB, exceeds 12.0 GB available

24.0 GB required12.0 GB available

200% VRAM needed

12.0 GB over capacity — needs offload or smaller quantization

Fit status

Too heavy

Decode

3.1 tok/s

TTFT

61716 ms

Safe context

Memory

24.0 GB / 12.0 GB

Offload

50%

Memory breakdown

Weights9.4 GB

KV Cache12.2 GB

Runtime1.2 GB

Headroom1.2 GB

See how fast it feels

With memory offload — actual speed may be lower

See how fast it feelsNous Dolphin 13B on Intel Arc A730M 12GB
1st promptCold start — includes initialization
>What is local AI inference?
Local AI inference means running an AI language model directly on your own hardware — your laptop, desktop, or server — instead of sending requests to a remote cloud API.

When you run inference locally the model weights are loaded into your GPU or unified memory. Each token you generate requires reading those weights from memory, so memory bandwidth is the main bottleneck for decode speed.

Key benefits of running locally:
  - Full privacy: your prompts never leave your machine
  - No per-token cost or rate limits
  - Works offline once the model is downloaded
  - Latency depends only on your hardware
2nd promptWarm — model ready, no init overhead
>How much VRAM do I need?
It depends on the model size and quantization level. A rough rule of thumb:

  Model size     Q4 (4-bit)    Q8 (8-bit)    FP16
  7B params      ~4.3 GB       ~7.5 GB       ~14 GB
  13B params     ~7.9 GB       ~13.9 GB      ~26 GB
  70B params     ~42.7 GB      ~74.9 GB      ~140 GB

Most people use 4-bit quantization (Q4_K_M) which gives 90-95% of full quality at a fraction of the memory. A 24 GB GPU can comfortably run most 7B-13B models.
Estimated: 3.1 tok/s decode · 61.7s TTFT (warm) · 8 tok/s prefill

What limits this setup

Usable VRAM is the main blocker for this model.

Not enough usable memory

The model needs 24.0 GB, but this setup only exposes 12.0 GB of usable VRAM.

Runtime ecosystem is narrower than CUDA

Intel GPUs can look attractive on memory per dollar, but local AI tooling, kernels, and model coverage are still broader and easier on CUDA today.

Best improvement path

Add more VRAM headroom

The first useful upgrade is more dedicated VRAM so you can fit the model without shrinking context or dropping to a much lower quant.

Prefer CUDA if you want the path of least resistance

If your goal is maximum runtime coverage, easier troubleshooting, and better support for new local AI releases, CUDA is usually still the safer upgrade path.

Performance by workload

Workload	Grade	Fit	Decode	TTFT	Context
Chat	F	Too heavy	5.8 tok/s	18132 ms	4K
Coding	F	Too heavy	3.1 tok/s	61716 ms	4K
Agentic Coding	F	Too heavy	2.7 tok/s	104636 ms	4K
Reasoning	F	Too heavy	3.1 tok/s	72937 ms	4K
RAG	F	Too heavy	2.7 tok/s	130795 ms	4K

Quantization options

How Nous Dolphin 13B (13B params) fits at each quantization level on Intel Arc A730M 12GB (12.0 GB usable).

Quant	Bits	VRAM	Quality	Fit
Q2_K	2	5.1 GB	Low	A73
Q3_K_S	3	6.4 GB	Low	A73
NVFP4	4

Upgrade options

Hardware that runs Nous Dolphin 13B well

Intel Arc Pro B60 24GBBudget pick

24 GB VRAM (+12)456 GB/s (+120)

Makes the model fit on the accelerator instead of staying completely out of reach.18.6 tok/s decode

Makes the model fit on the accelerator instead of staying completely out of reach.

Removes host-memory offload, which is usually the single biggest latency and throughput win.

~$599 MSRP

RTX 5090 32GBBiggest leap

32 GB VRAM (+20)1792 GB/s (+1456)

Makes the model fit on the accelerator instead of staying completely out of reach.130.8 tok/s decode

Makes the model fit on the accelerator instead of staying completely out of reach.

Removes host-memory offload, which is usually the single biggest latency and throughput win.

~$1,999 MSRP

Intel Data Center GPU Max 1550 128GBBest value

128 GB VRAM (+116)3200 GB/s (+2864)

Makes the model fit on the accelerator instead of staying completely out of reach.182 tok/s decode

Makes the model fit on the accelerator instead of staying completely out of reach.

Removes host-memory offload, which is usually the single biggest latency and throughput win.

~$15,000 MSRP

Gaudi 3 128GBIntel upgrade

128 GB VRAM (+116)3700 GB/s (+3364)

Makes the model fit on the accelerator instead of staying completely out of reach.182 tok/s decode

Makes the model fit on the accelerator instead of staying completely out of reach.

Removes host-memory offload, which is usually the single biggest latency and throughput win.

~$15,000 MSRP

Frequently asked questions

Can Intel Arc A730M 12GB run Nous Dolphin 13B?

No, Nous Dolphin 13B requires more memory than Intel Arc A730M 12GB provides.

How much VRAM does Nous Dolphin 13B need?

Nous Dolphin 13B (13B parameters) requires approximately 24.0 GB of memory with Q5_K_M quantization.

What is the best quantization for Nous Dolphin 13B?

The recommended quantization for Nous Dolphin 13B is Q5_K_M, which balances quality and memory efficiency.

What speed will Nous Dolphin 13B run at on Intel Arc A730M 12GB?

On Intel Arc A730M 12GB, Nous Dolphin 13B achieves approximately 3.1 tokens per second decode speed with a time-to-first-token of 61716ms using Q5_K_M quantization.

Can Intel Arc A730M 12GB run Nous Dolphin 13B for coding?

For coding workloads, Nous Dolphin 13B on Intel Arc A730M 12GB receives a F grade with 3.1 tok/s and 4K context.

What context window can Nous Dolphin 13B use on Intel Arc A730M 12GB?

On Intel Arc A730M 12GB, Nous Dolphin 13B can safely use up to 4K tokens of context. The model's official context limit is 16K, but available memory constrains the safe maximum.

What should I upgrade first if Nous Dolphin 13B feels slow on Intel Arc A730M 12GB?

See all results for Intel Arc A730M 12GB See all hardware for Nous Dolphin 13B

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