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## opus: AI (o)(p)erator Micro(u) (s)td
*Crafting the micro standard templates for AI Operators on ROCm*
</div>

## About
**opus** is a lightweight, templated C++ DSL designed to accelerate the development of HIP/C++ kernels for AMD GPUs. Inspired by projects such as [ck/ck_tile](https://github.com/ROCm/composable_kernel) and [cutlass/cute](https://github.com/NVIDIA/cutlass), **opus** adopts a significantly simplified design while prioritizing maintainability.

Distributed as a single-header library (`opus.hpp`), **opus** provides only essential abstractions. This constraint requires careful trade-offs when introducing new concepts. For instance, **opus** deliberately avoids a unified `tensor` class—which typically combines data providers (pointers or register arrays/tuples) with layout descriptors (for index calculation)—and instead separates them into two distinct classes. This design preserves the flexibility of manual index computation while maintaining clarity. As a result, **opus** positions itself **above hand-written HIP kernels** yet **below highly optimized template libraries like ck/cutlass**.

If you are looking for:
- AMDGPU data type declaration and conversion
- Automated vectorized buffer load/store dispatch (without manual implementation)
- Support for various matrix core instructions with minimal code changes when switching MFMA types
- A collection of utility device functions
- (Optional) Simple and intuitive layout abstractions to streamline index calculations

then **opus** is a good choice for you.

However, if you are looking for:

- Pre-optimized kernels (e.g., GEMM, attention, reduction) for direct use
- Reusable device-side pipelines for GEMM/attention/reduction
- A comprehensive layout system capable of describing arbitrary tensor transformations

then **opus** is not the right fit — you may be looking for alternatives like `ck` or `aiter` kernels.

## File structure

```
csrc/include/opus/
├── opus.hpp       # Single-header library (all you need to include)
├── logo.png       # Logo
└── README.md      # This file
```

## Usage

Include the header in your HIP/C++ source:
```cpp
#include "opus/opus.hpp"
```

No separate build step is required — just make sure `csrc/include/` is on your include path.

## Design
The **opus** source code is structured into two logical sections within a single header file:
- The first half contains device-independent structures, containers, and utility functions (number, seq, array, tuple, layout, etc.)
- The second half includes architecture-specific device functions, such as buffer load/store operations and MFMA instructions

Below, we illustrate the usage of **opus** through a naive GEMM example.

### Naive GEMM using opus

#### 1. Vectorized load/store
Loading data from global memory can be as simple as pointer dereferencing:
```cpp
int offset_a = (threadIdx.x / 32 * 4) + (threadIdx.x % 32 * stride_a);
fp16x4_t v_a = *reinterpret_cast<const fp16x4_t*>(reinterpret_cast<const fp16_t*>(ptr_a) + offset_a);
```
*For this example, we load data based on the matrix core layout of the A matrix (check [this blog](https://rocm.blogs.amd.com/software-tools-optimization/matrix-cores/README.html) for more detail about matrix cores).*

However, manually controlling vectorization across different layouts can lead to repetitive and error-prone code. With **opus**, the same operation becomes more expressive and adaptable:
```cpp
// Create fp16 gmem and load with vectorized load<*>
auto g_a = opus::make_gmem(reinterpret_cast<const opus::fp16_t*>(ptr_a));
auto v_a = g_a.load<4>((threadIdx.x / 32 * 4) + (threadIdx.x % 32 * stride_a));

// Alternatively, directly create a fp16x4 gmem
auto g_a = opus::make_gmem(reinterpret_cast<const opus::fp16x4_t*>(ptr_a));
auto v_a = g_a.load(((threadIdx.x / 32 * 4) + (threadIdx.x % 32 * stride_a)) / 4_I);
```
Note we use `auto` to hint the return loading data without knowing the vectorization beforehand. The `gmem` abstraction automatically handles vectorized load/store operations. Optionally, it can leverage AMD GPU's out-of-bounds (OOB) load features when a buffer size is provided as the 2nd argument for `make_gmem()`. Refer to the [AMD GPU ISA](https://gpuopen.com/machine-readable-isa/) and the `make_gmem()` API in `opus.hpp` for details.

#### 2. Layout for index calculation
**opus** provides a lightweight `layout` descriptor to simplify ND tensor address calculation. It computes linear offsets as:
```
offset = index[0] * stride[0] + index[1] * stride[1] + index[2] * stride[2] + ...
```
Here, indices and strides can be static or dynamic values. Using layouts helps abstract repetitive index calculations into reusable descriptors.
```cpp
auto u = opus::make_layout(opus::make_tuple(128, 64));
...
int offset = u(4, 8); // returns 4 * 64 + 8 * 1
```
If no strides are provided, `make_layout` assumes a packed (row-major) tensor and computes strides automatically based on the input shape.

#### 3. x-dim / p-dim / y-dim — distributed tensor views across threads
*(optional — skip if you don't want to introduce additional concepts)*

In GPU programming, tensors are often distributed across multiple threads. Consider loading a `48x32` tensor using a 64-thread wavefront:
- Each thread loads 8 contiguous elements per row
- 4 threads cover one row (32 elements)
- The remaining 16 threads load 16 rows
- Each thread repeats 3 times to cover all 48 rows

We adapt the `p/y/x` terminology from [ck_tile](https://github.com/ROCm/composable_kernel/tree/develop/include/ck_tile) to describe this distribution:
```
         x[0]       x[1]
          v          v
tensor : [48      , 32]
view   : [[3,  16], [4,   8]]
           ^   ^     ^    ^
         y[0] p[0]  p[1] y[1]
```
- **x-dim**: The original tensor dimensions
- **y-dim**: Dimensions handled within a single thread (register-level)
- **p-dim**: Dimensions requiring collaboration across threads

While the basic `layout` structure does not inherently understand `x/y/p` partitioning, **opus** enables such descriptions through:

1. Internal use of `underscore` placeholders to hint at p/y dimensions
2. The `adaptor` concept to provide additional structural information

The above example can be expressed like this:
```cpp
struct some_tile_adaptor{
    OPUS_H_D constexpr auto shape()  { return opus::make_tuple(3_I, 16_I, 4_I, 8_I); }
    OPUS_H_D constexpr auto dim()    { using namespace opus;
                                       return tuple<tuple<y_dim, p_dim>, tuple<p_dim, y_dim>>{};}
};

template<typename S, typename C>
OPUS_H_D constexpr auto partition_layout(some_tile_adaptor && a, S&& x_stride, C&& p_coord) {
    return opus::make_layout(a.shape(),
                             opus::unfold_x_stride(a.dim(), a.shape(), x_stride),
                             opus::unfold_p_coord(a.dim(), p_coord));
}

...
auto lane_id = threadIdx.x % 64;
auto s = opus::make_tuple(some_row_stride, 1_I);
auto c = opus::make_tuple(lane_id / 4_I, lane_id % 4_I);

auto u = partition_layout(some_tile_adaptor{}, s, c);
...
auto offset = u(1, 0); // get offset at y[0]=1, y[1]=0 for each thread
```
**opus** also supports direct load/store operations using `layout` objects, which automate the indexing logic. For instance, instead of manually looping over repetitions:
```cpp
auto g = opus::make_gmem(reinterpret_cast<const some_tile_dtype*>(ptr));

some_vec_type v[3];
for(auto i = 0; i < 3; i++)
    v[i] = g.load<8>(u(i, 0));
```
You can simply write:
```cpp
auto g = opus::make_gmem(reinterpret_cast<const some_tile_dtype*>(ptr));
auto v = g.load<8>(u);
```

#### 4. Warp GEMM and tiled MMA
Use `make_mfma()` to create a warp-level GEMM instance, and `make_tiled_mma()` for multi-warp (block-level) GEMM operations. These functions return `adaptor` structures that integrate seamlessly with the layout system.
1. The 1st argument `shape` is usually from the x-dim point of view.
2. The 2nd optional argument is `stride`, from x-dim point of view.
3. The 3rd optional argument is `coordinate`, from p-dim point of view.
4. Use `operator()` to issue the underlying matrix core instruction.

```cpp
using namespace opus;

// 32x32x8 f16 matrix core
auto mma = make_mfma<fp16_t, fp16_t, fp32_t>(32_I, 32_I, 8_I);

// 32x32x8 f16 matrix core, with A/B swapped
auto mma = make_mfma<fp16_t, fp16_t, fp32_t>(32_I, 32_I, 8_I, mfma_adaptor_swap_ab{});

// 2x2 warp GEMM of 16x16x16 MFMA, A/B swapped, each wave repeats 2x along M
// Block tile: 64x32x16
auto mma = make_tiled_mma<fp16_t, fp16_t, fp32_t>(seq<2, 1, 1>{}, seq<2, 2, 1>{}, seq<16, 16, 16>{}, mfma_adaptor_swap_ab{});

...
v_c = mma(v_a, v_b, v_c);
```

Check [this repo](https://github.com/carlushuang/gcnasm/tree/master/matrix_core_opus) for a complete MFMA example using **opus**.

## Tests and examples

See [`op_tests/opus/`](../../op_tests/opus/) for unit tests and working examples that serve as both a test suite and reference code.

## Best Practice to Reduce HIP Kernel Compile Times

Template-heavy headers like `opus.hpp` and the HIP SDK headers can dominate compile time. The following techniques can dramatically reduce it — in one case achieving a **61x speedup** over a standard torch extension build (21s → 346ms). See the [warp_sort_bitonic benchmark](https://github.com/carlushuang/gcnasm/tree/master/warp_sort_bitonic) for detailed numbers.

### Background: hipcc's two-pass compilation

hipcc compiles `.hip` files in **two passes** — once for the host (x86_64) and once for the device (AMDGPU). Both passes parse the same source, but each has different bottlenecks. The optimizations below are organized accordingly.

### Device code: reducing what the GPU compiler must parse

#### Replace `<hip/hip_runtime.h>` with compiler builtins

`<hip/hip_runtime.h>` expands to ~190K preprocessed lines. Most kernel code only needs a handful of symbols that have direct AMDGCN compiler builtin equivalents:

| Standard HIP | Builtin replacement |
|---|---|
| `threadIdx.x / .y / .z` | `__builtin_amdgcn_workitem_id_x/y/z()` |
| `blockIdx.x / .y / .z` | `__builtin_amdgcn_workgroup_id_x/y/z()` |
| `blockDim.x / .y / .z` | `__builtin_amdgcn_workgroup_size_x/y/z()` |
| `gridDim.x / .y / .z` | `__builtin_amdgcn_grid_size_x/y/z()` |
| `__syncthreads()` | `__builtin_amdgcn_s_barrier()` |
| `warpSize` | `__builtin_amdgcn_wavefrontsize()` |
| `__shfl()` | `opus::shfl()` (impl via `__builtin_amdgcn_ds_bpermute()`) |

The remaining host-side symbols (`dim3`, `<<<>>>` support) can be declared in a ~60-line minimal header. This reduces preprocessed lines from 190K to ~11K.

#### Use `-D__HIPCC_RTC__` to suppress implicit includes

hipcc implicitly includes `__clang_hip_runtime_wrapper.h`, which pulls in C++ standard library headers (`<cmath>`, `<cstdlib>`, etc.) even when they're unused. Defining `-D__HIPCC_RTC__` tells this wrapper to skip those includes (the same flag used by HIP's runtime compilation path). Note: you may need to provide `#define INFINITY __builtin_huge_valf()` since `<cmath>` is no longer included.

#### Use `--genco` for device-only compilation

If you launch kernels from Python (via `hipModuleLaunchKernel`), you can skip the host pass entirely:

```bash
hipcc --genco --offload-arch=gfx942 -O3 -D__HIPCC_RTC__ kernel.hip -o kernel.hsaco
```

This produces a `.hsaco` code object with zero host code. Use `extern "C" __global__` wrappers to give template instantiations predictable symbol names, then load from Python with `hipModuleLoad` + `hipModuleGetFunction`. With `--genco` the minimal header needs **zero host declarations** — no `dim3`, no `hipLaunchKernel`.

### Host code: avoiding redundant parsing

#### Guard device-only code with `__HIP_DEVICE_COMPILE__`

When hipcc compiles a `.hip` file, the host pass still sees **all** source code — including `__device__` functions, kernel bodies, and any headers they pull in. The host compiler parses and type-checks everything, even though it only generates code for the host-side launch stubs. Heavy template headers like `opus.hpp` are only needed by the device pass. Wrapping them in `#ifdef __HIP_DEVICE_COMPILE__` with an empty kernel stub for the host pass avoids parsing them twice:

```cpp
#ifdef __HIP_DEVICE_COMPILE__
#include "opus/opus.hpp"
// ... full kernel implementation ...
template<typename T> __global__ void my_kernel(T* ptr) { /* real body */ }
#else
template<typename T> __global__ void my_kernel(T* ptr) {}  // empty stub
#endif
```

The host pass only needs to see the `__global__` function signature to generate the launch stub — it doesn't need the body or any device-side headers.

#### Eliminate the C++ binding layer

Framework binding layers are compiled on the host side and add significant overhead:

| Binding approach | Binding compile time |
|---|---|
| torch `CUDAExtension` (hipcc + pybind11 + ATen) | ~8s |
| pybind11 only (g++) | ~4s |
| tvm_ffi (g++) | ~1s |
| ctypes (no binding at all) | **0s** |

Using `ctypes.CDLL` to call `extern "C"` functions — or `hipModuleLaunchKernel` with a `.hsaco` code object — eliminates binding compilation entirely. No pybind11, no torch extension, no framework headers on the host side.

### Summary

| Technique | Applies to | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Compiler builtins instead of `hip_runtime.h` | Device | 190K → 11K preprocessed lines |
| `-D__HIPCC_RTC__` | Both | Suppresses implicit stdlib includes |
| `--genco` (device-only compile) | Device | Eliminates host pass entirely |
| `__HIP_DEVICE_COMPILE__` guard | Host | Skips heavy headers during host pass |
| ctypes / `hipModuleLaunchKernel` | Host | Eliminates C++ binding compilation |

## Device Intrinsic Wrappers

`opus.hpp` provides device intrinsic wrappers so kernels only need `#include <opus/opus.hpp>` — no `<hip/hip_runtime.h>` required for device code:

| HIP runtime | opus:: wrapper |
|---|---|
| `threadIdx.x` | `opus::thread_id_x()` |
| `blockIdx.x` | `opus::block_id_x()` |
| `blockDim.x` | `opus::block_size_x()` |
| `gridDim.x * blockDim.x` | `opus::grid_size_x()` |
| `__syncthreads()` | `opus::sync_threads()` |
| `__all(pred)` | `opus::warp_all(pred)` |

For host-side code (kernel launch, memory management), use `#include <opus/hip_minimal.hpp>` which provides `dim3`, `hipMalloc`, `hipLaunchKernelGGL`, etc.

## Compile-Time Best Practices

For a comprehensive guide on reducing compile time — including the recommended host/device separation pattern, template instantiation reduction, LLVM builtins, and profiling with `-ftime-trace` — see the [OPUS Kernel Best Practice skill](../../../.claude/skills/opus-kernel-best-practice/SKILL.md).

Invoke it in Claude Code with `/opus-kernel-best-practice`.
