It's almost certain that AMD will launch a 16-core Ryzen 3000 series CPU to compete for the best CPU for gaming crown, and likely more than one. I say "almost" because nothing is ever completely certain, until it is, and we are not quite at that point yet as it pertains to 16 cores and 32 threads of mainstream Ryzen muscle. Disclaimer out of the way, a prominent leaker has posted specs of what he claims is a 16-core/32-thread Ryzen 3000 processor.

Twitter user APISAK says he is in possession of an engineering sample (ES), which are pre-release slices of silicon that companies like AMD and Intel send out to OEMs and reviewers for validation and testing. ES specs are not necessarily indicative of the final product, though the closer it gets to launch, the more likely they are.

Zen2 ES 16 CoreBase clock 3.3 GhzฺBoost clock 4.2 GhzMB X570This CPU name can't decode by decode chartPS(ภาพหน้าจออาจจะอัพโหลดให้ในภายหลัง)May 9, 2019

In this case, however, the clockspeeds seem low. According to APISAK, his 16-core/32-thread ES chip has a 3.3GHz base clock and 4.2GHz boost clock. It's not clear what the model is, and apparently AMD switched things up so it can't be decoded using this handy decode chart .

While the clocks look low, it's possible that the reported boost clock is an all-core boost. We'd expect that to be in the range of 3.7GHz to 4.2GHz, versus a single-core boost in the range of 4.6GHz to 4.8GHz. Time will tell.

AMD has done a good job of keeping things close to the vest up to this point. Unfortunately, that means there is not a lot out there to compare these specs against. The best we have is an entirely separate leak from back in December by Youtuber AdoredTV, which posted a supposed lineup of several Ryzen 3000 series processors, including model names, specs, and pricing. According to that leak, here's a rundown of what AMD has on tap:

Ryzen 9 3850X —16C/32T, 4.3GHz to 5.1GHz, 135W TDP, $499

—16C/32T, 4.3GHz to 5.1GHz, 135W TDP, $499 Ryzen 9 3800X —16C/32T, 3.9GHz to 4.7GHz, 125W TDP, $449

—16C/32T, 3.9GHz to 4.7GHz, 125W TDP, $449 Ryzen 7 3700X —12C/24T, 4.2GHz to 5.0GHz, 105W TDP, $329

—12C/24T, 4.2GHz to 5.0GHz, 105W TDP, $329 Ryzen 7 3700 —12C/24T, 3.8GHz to 4.6GHz, 95W TPD, $299

—12C/24T, 3.8GHz to 4.6GHz, 95W TPD, $299 Ryzen 5 3600X —8C/16T, 4.0GHz to 4.8GHz, 95W TDP, $229

—8C/16T, 4.0GHz to 4.8GHz, 95W TDP, $229 Ryzen 5 3600 —8C/16T, 3.6GHz to 4.4GHz, 65W TDP, $178

—8C/16T, 3.6GHz to 4.4GHz, 65W TDP, $178 Ryzen 3 3300X —6C/12T, 3.5GHz to 4.3GHz, 65W TDP, $129

—6C/12T, 3.5GHz to 4.3GHz, 65W TDP, $129 Ryzen 3 3300—6C/12T, 3.2GHz to 4.0GHz, 50W TDP, $99

All of this has to be taken with a grain of salt, of course. At the same time, we are supremely confident that at least one 16-core/32-thread Ryzen processor is in the cards. AMD CEO Dr. Lisa Su hinted as much when talking about the chiplet design that the Ryzen 3000 series uses.

"Some people may have noticed on the package some extra room. There is some extra room on that package and I think you might expect we will have more than eight cores," Dr. Su told PCWorld.

She essentially confirmed that Ryzen 3000 will scale beyond 8 cores, she just didn't specifically say there will be 16-core chips. In light of this newest leak on Twitter, though, along with the AdoredTV leak and Dr. Su's comments, it would be a surprise if AMD stopped short of 16 cores.