Will It Run AI

Can Falcon 40B Instruct run on Gaudi 3 128GB?

YES — Runs Great

B70Good
Estimated from fit model

Falcon 40B Instruct needs ~44.6 GB VRAM. Gaudi 3 128GB has 128.0 GB. With Q5_K_M quantization, expect ~100 tok/s.

Runtime: OllamaCapacity: RoomyBandwidth: HighStack: BasicBottleneck: Balanced
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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) — 44.6 GB, 99.8 tok/s, Runs well
44.6 GB required128.0 GB available
35% VRAM used

Fit status

Runs well

Decode

99.8 tok/s

TTFT

1941 ms

Safe context

8K

Memory

44.6 GB / 128.0 GB

Memory breakdown

Weights28.8 GB
KV Cache1.8 GB
Runtime1.2 GB
Headroom12.8 GB

See how fast it feels

See how fast it feelsFalcon 40B Instruct on Gaudi 3 128GB
1st promptCold start — includes initialization
>Solve: If a train travels at 60 mph for 2.5 hours, how far does it go?
Let me work through this step by step. Given information: - Speed = 60 mph (miles per hour) - Time = 2.5 hours Formula: Distance = Speed x Time Calculation: Distance = 60 mph x 2.5 h = 150 miles The train travels 150 miles. Double-check: at 60 mph the train covers 60 miles each hour. In half an hour it covers 30 miles. So in 2.5 hours: 60 + 60 + 30 = 150 miles. Confirmed.
2nd promptWarm — model ready, no init overhead
>What if the train stops for 20 minutes halfway?
The stop doesn't change the total distance covered while moving, but it affects total trip time. Breakdown: - First half: 1.25 hours at 60 mph = 75 miles - Stop: 20 minutes (no distance) - Second half: 1.25 hours at 60 mph = 75 miles Total distance: 150 miles (same) Total time: 2.5 h + 0.33 h = 2.83 hours Average speed: 150 / 2.83 = 53 mph The distance stays the same but average speed drops to 53 mph because of the stop.
Estimated: 99.8 tok/s decode · 1.9s TTFT (warm) · 249 tok/s prefill

What limits this setup

The raw memory story may look fine, but the software ecosystem is still a constraint here.

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

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

WorkloadGradeFitDecodeTTFTContext
ChatBRuns well99.8 tok/s1059 ms8K
CodingBRuns well99.8 tok/s1941 ms8K
Agentic CodingARuns well99.8 tok/s2823 ms8K
ReasoningBRuns well91.7 tok/s2494 ms8K
RAGARuns well99.8 tok/s3529 ms8K

Quantization options

How Falcon 40B Instruct (40B params) fits at each quantization level on Gaudi 3 128GB (128.0 GB usable).

QuantBitsVRAMQualityFit
Q2_K
2
15.6 GB
LowB59
Q3_K_S
3
19.6 GB
LowB60
NVFP4
4
22.4 GB
MediumB60
Q4_K_M
4
24.4 GB
MediumB60
Q5_K_M
5
28.8 GB
HighB61
Q6_K
6
32.8 GB
HighB62
Q8_0
8
42.8 GB
Very HighB63
F16Best for your GPU
16
82.0 GB
MaximumB68

Get started

Copy-paste commands to run Falcon 40B Instruct on your machine.

Run

docker run --rm -it ghcr.io/ggerganov/llama.cpp:full \ --hf-repo "tiiuae/falcon-40b-instruct" \ --hf-file "falcon-40b-instruct-Q5_K_M.gguf" \ -c 4096 -ngl 99

Frequently asked questions

Can Gaudi 3 128GB run Falcon 40B Instruct?

Yes, Gaudi 3 128GB can run Falcon 40B Instruct with a B grade (Runs well). Expected decode speed: 99.8 tok/s.

How much VRAM does Falcon 40B Instruct need?

Falcon 40B Instruct (40B parameters) requires approximately 44.6 GB of memory with Q5_K_M quantization.

What is the best quantization for Falcon 40B Instruct?

The recommended quantization for Falcon 40B Instruct is Q5_K_M, which balances quality and memory efficiency.

What speed will Falcon 40B Instruct run at on Gaudi 3 128GB?

On Gaudi 3 128GB, Falcon 40B Instruct achieves approximately 99.8 tokens per second decode speed with a time-to-first-token of 1941ms using Q5_K_M quantization.

Can Gaudi 3 128GB run Falcon 40B Instruct for coding?

For coding workloads, Falcon 40B Instruct on Gaudi 3 128GB receives a B grade with 99.8 tok/s and 8K context.

What context window can Falcon 40B Instruct use on Gaudi 3 128GB?

On Gaudi 3 128GB, Falcon 40B Instruct can safely use up to 8K tokens of context. The model's official context limit is 8K, but available memory constrains the safe maximum.

What should I upgrade first if Falcon 40B Instruct feels slow on Gaudi 3 128GB?

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.

Would CUDA be a better path than Gaudi 3 128GB for Falcon 40B Instruct?

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.

See all results for Gaudi 3 128GBSee all hardware for Falcon 40B Instruct
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