RAG and RL tool calling are pushing CPUs back into ML training resource math
StasBekman · x · 2026-10-01
Stas Bekman highlights a shift in ML resource patterns: CPUs were once only for DataLoader work. RAG workloads (database queries) started adding CPU load around 2025, and by 2026 RL tool calling — compiling, running, and validating generated code — is pushing demand further, sometimes requiring dedicated CPU nodes so co-located cores don't stall GPUs. He updated the CPU chapter of his ml-engineering repo (19.1k stars) and speculates CPUs may evolve to be more GPU-like, offloading more work.
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