OEM Backend Onboarding (template + process)

Onboard a vendor's chip as a certified HAL backend — technical + commercial. Concepts: ../WARMUP.md Ch. 5; Phase 09.

The process

1. Technical integration

  • Vendor (or our team) implements a HAL backend (P09) wrapping their compute libraries against our versioned ABI (P09 Ch. 6).
  • Capabilities declared (dtypes, ops, perf hints) for capability routing (P09 Ch. 4).

2. Conformance certification (the gate + the lever)

  • Correctness conformance: the single test matrix, all ops within tolerance (P09 Ch. 7 — declarations are tested, not trusted).
  • Performance conformance: must hit X% of roofline (P01) on key ops, else "supported, not recommended."
  • Passing = "certified backend" status — a quality promise to customers and a negotiation chip with the vendor (ecosystem access for a tested backend + co-marketing).

3. Commercial + relationship

  • Certification protects our platform's reputation (a slow/broken backend poisons it) and gives the vendor a clear target.
  • Versioned ABI means their backend survives our releases — the trust that sustains the ecosystem.
  • Each certified OEM = a backend behind the HAL = a revenue/adoption event.

Checklist (per OEM)

  • ABI version compatibility confirmed
  • Backend passes correctness conformance
  • Backend meets the performance tier (or labeled accordingly)
  • Capability declarations verified
  • Co-marketing / certification announced
  • Added to the release compatibility matrix (P10)

Your additions

  • The AMD-specific costs (no PTX-equivalent, per-gfx rebuilds — P03):
  • How you'd phase a first OEM with a partial op set:
  • The certification tiers and what each promises a customer: