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NVIDIA officially unveils Rubin: its next-gen AI platform with huge upgrades, next-gen HBM4

Anthony Garreffa | Artificial Intelligence | Jan 5, 2026 10:45 PM CST

NVIDIA founder and CEO Jensen Huang proudly took the stage at CES 2026, unveiling the company's next-generation Rubin AI platform.

NVIDIA officially unveils Rubin: its next-gen AI platform with huge upgrades, next-gen HBM4

NVIDIA's new Rubin AI platform is the successor to its dominant Blackwell AI chips, with Rubin being the first extreme-codesigned, six-chip AI platform, with Jensen adding that it's now in full production. NVIDIA is aiming to "push AI to the next frontier" with Rubin, not just offering far more computing power, but slicing the cost of generating tokens to around 1/10 of Blackwell, making large-scale AI "far more economical to deploy".

The use of extreme codesign means that designing all of the components together is essential because scaling AI to gigascale requires tighter integration innovation between chips, trays, racks, networking, storage, and software to remove bottlenecks. This massively reduces the costs of training and inference, added Huang.

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Continue reading: NVIDIA officially unveils Rubin: its next-gen AI platform with huge upgrades, next-gen HBM4 (full post)

ASUS ROG Zephyrus G16, G14 gaming laptops upgraded at CES 2026 with new Intel and AMD CPUs

Anthony Garreffa | Laptops | Jan 5, 2026 10:37 PM CST

ASUS has unveiled its new ROG Zephyrus G16 and G14 gaming laptops at CES 2026, powered by Intel's new Core Ultra Series 3 "Panther Lake" CPUs.

ASUS ROG Zephyrus G16, G14 gaming laptops upgraded at CES 2026 with new Intel and AMD CPUs

The new ROG Zephyrus G16 (GU606) and ROG Zephyrus G14 (GU405) gaming laptops sport the new Intel Panther Lake CPUs with up to 16 cores and up to 50 TOPS from the NPU for local and in-game AI workloads.

ASUS lets you configure the smaller ROG Zephyrus G14 with up to an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Laptop GPU, while the bigger G16 laptop can be tweaked up to the RTX 5090 Laptop GPU. Max GPU TGPs have also been increased by up to 23% through manual mode, from 120W to 130W on the G14, and 130W to 160W on the G16.

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Continue reading: ASUS ROG Zephyrus G16, G14 gaming laptops upgraded at CES 2026 with new Intel and AMD CPUs (full post)

ASUS unveils ROG x Kojima Productions high-perf gaming tech, new ROG Flow Z13-KJP gaming tablet

Anthony Garreffa | Gaming | Jan 5, 2026 10:29 PM CST

ASUS ROG announced its new collaboration at CES 2026 with Hideo Kojima-founded Kojima Productions, for a new lineup of KJP peripherals, including a new custom ROG Flow Z13-KJP gaming tablet.

ASUS unveils ROG x Kojima Productions high-perf gaming tech, new ROG Flow Z13-KJP gaming tablet

The company says that at the heart of its new collaboration is "Ludens", the belief that humans aren't just thinkers, but players and creators. The new collaboration combines the spirit of the ROG motto with "For Those Who Dare with KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS" vision From Sapiens to Ludens.

ASUS says that Ludens are the ones who experiment, mod, create, and challenge what games - and gaming hardware - can be. By uniting cutting-edge ROG hardware with KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS visionary storytelling, this partnership is a tribute to that spirit: everything we build, every detail we design, is for gamers everywhere - For Ludens Who Dare.

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Continue reading: ASUS unveils ROG x Kojima Productions high-perf gaming tech, new ROG Flow Z13-KJP gaming tablet (full post)

MSI's world's first active, instant protection for power supplies protects GPUs

Kosta Andreadis | Cases, Cooling & PSU | Jan 5, 2026 10:16 PM CST

When it comes to the new 16-pin PCIe power connector for modern GPUs, we've seen no shortage of cables melting and connection points on both the GPU and PSU sides damaged by overheating. It's a definite concern when you get into the realm of flagship cards like the GeForce RTX 5090, which is rated at 575W but can draw up to 1000W over two 16-pin PCIe power connectors, as seen in MSI's new GeForce RTX 5090 32G LIGHTNING Z.

MSI's world's first active, instant protection for power supplies protects GPUs

And when it comes to safe power delivery and safety measures for MSI's new beast, and all other GPUs that use the 12V-2x6 connector, MSI's new MPG Ai1600TS, MPG Ai1300TS, MAG A10000PLS, and MAG A1200PLS PCIe 5 power supplies feature an innovative solution.

These PSUs, announced at CES 2026, offer active protection against overheating and cable melting, thanks to GPU Safeguard and Safeguard+ technology, which includes the world's first active, instant protection for power supplies.

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Continue reading: MSI's world's first active, instant protection for power supplies protects GPUs (full post)

ASUS reveals monster new G1000 flagship ROG gaming desktop PC: packed with the best PC hardware

Anthony Garreffa | Computer Systems | Jan 5, 2026 10:01 PM CST

ASUS has just unleashed its new ROG G1000 at CES 2026, a next-level desktop gaming PC that has the best PC gaming hardware money can buy, and show-stopping innovation. Check it out:

ASUS reveals monster new G1000 flagship ROG gaming desktop PC: packed with the best PC hardware

At the core of the new ASUS ROG G1000 desktop gaming PC is the built-in AniMe Holo fan, which is the world's first holographic fan system inside of a pre-built gaming PC, and it's capable of projecting customizable holographic visuals on your PC.

The AniMe Holo module is housed inside of an independent chamber that features a hinge-door design, making sure that airflow isn't interfering with the rest of the components thermal path, helping reduce overall system noise by limiting vibration from the AniMe Holo system.

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Continue reading: ASUS reveals monster new G1000 flagship ROG gaming desktop PC: packed with the best PC hardware (full post)

AMD's new Ryzen AI 400 series laptops will hit the market in next couple of months

Anthony Garreffa | Laptops | Jan 5, 2026 9:56 PM CST

AMD has officially launched its new Ryzen AI 400 series CPUs ready to power the next wave of AI desktops and laptops, with the flagship Ryzen AI 9 HX 475 processor leading the charge.

AMD's new Ryzen AI 400 series laptops will hit the market in next couple of months

AMD announced its new Ryzen AI 400 series processors will be available starting in Q1 2026 from partners including Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo, GIGABYTE, MSI, and more. Inside, they all feature AMD Zen 5 cores, RDNA 3.5 GPU cores, XDNA 2-based NPUs, ROCm support, and they're Copilot+ PC ready.

The flagship Ryzen AI 9 HX 475 processor rolls out with 12 cores and 24 threads of Zen 5 processing power that boosts at up to 5.2GHz, it has 36MB of cache, 60 TOPS from the NPU for AI workloads, 16 CUs of RDNA 3.5 GPU power, and memory speed support of up to 8533MT/s.

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Continue reading: AMD's new Ryzen AI 400 series laptops will hit the market in next couple of months (full post)

AMD commits regicide and replaces the world's fastest gaming CPU

Jak Connor | Processors | Jan 5, 2026 9:49 PM CST

AMD has officially unveiled the new replacement for the best-in-slot gaming CPU, the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D, as the company has unveiled a new selection of CPUs at CES 2026.

AMD commits regicide and replaces the world's fastest gaming CPU

The CPU AMD is now putting forward as its fastest gaming-focused CPU to date is the AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D, a refresh of the Zen 5 architecture that comes with very similar specifications when directly compared to the 9800X3D, but with performance metrics that exceed it. According to AMD the Ryzen 7 9850X3D is a 8-core 16 thread CPU that features a 5.6GHz boost clock, 104MB cache (L2 + L3), and a 120 TDP.

The only difference between the 9850X3D and its predecessor is the boost clock total, with the 9850X3D being 0.4GHz faster than the 9800X3D's maximum boost clock of 5.2GHz. The remaining specifications are exactly the same, but given the increase in boost clock we can expect modest gains across both single and multithreaded tasks. Leaked performance testing between the two CPUs indicates an approximate 5% performance gain with the 9850X3D.

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Continue reading: AMD commits regicide and replaces the world's fastest gaming CPU (full post)

AMD's new Ryzen 7 9850X3D is up to 60% faster in gaming than the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K

Anthony Garreffa | Processors | Jan 5, 2026 9:47 PM CST

AMD has just introduced its new Ryzen 7 9850X3D processor at CES 2026, offering up to 60% more gaming performance than Intel's far more power-hungry Core Ultra 9 285K.

AMD's new Ryzen 7 9850X3D is up to 60% faster in gaming than the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K

The new Ryzen 7 9850X3D is now the (new) fastest gaming processor on the planet, with AMD also announcing the best gaming and creation processor -- the new Ryzen 9 9950X3D. AMD provided some in-house benchmarking comparing its new Ryzen 7 9850X3D against the Core Ultra 9 285K, where it comes out on top across the board.

The 8 cores and 16 threads of Zen 5 processing power comes with a beefier 5.6GHz CPU boost clock speed, the same 104MB of L2+L3 cache and 120W TDP, and on the current AM5 socket. The biggest difference between the 9800X3D and 9850X3D is the clock speed increase (5.2GHz versus 5.6GHz) giving it an even bigger edge over the 285K.

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Continue reading: AMD's new Ryzen 7 9850X3D is up to 60% faster in gaming than the Intel Core Ultra 9 285K (full post)

AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D announced, the world's fastest gaming CPU levels up

Kosta Andreadis | Processors | Jan 5, 2026 9:41 PM CST

When it comes to picking up a CPU purely for PC gaming, AMD's Zen 5-powered Ryzen 7 9800X3D with its 3D V-Cache technology is widely considered the best choice if all you're looking for is maximizing your frames. Well, at CES 2026, AMD has officially confirmed that the Ryzen 7 9850X3D is coming, and it will indeed be faster than the Ryzen 7 9800X3D.

AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D announced, the world's fastest gaming CPU levels up

The configuration for the new Ryzen 7 9850X3D remains virtually the same, aside from the CPU Boost Clock increasing to 5.6 GHz from 5.2 GHz on the baseline Ryzen 7 9800X3D. The rest of the specs remain unchanged, as the CPU still sports 8 Zen Cores with 16 Threads, 104MB of cache, and a 120W TDP rating.

As part of its CES 2026 presentation, AMD confirmed that the new Ryzen 7 9850X3D is on track for a Q1 2026 release; however, no pricing was given. That said, we should expect it to launch with a higher price than the Ryzen 7 9800X3D's $479 USD MSRP.

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AMD unveils a new class of Ryzen AI Max CPUs, the new powerhouse is here

Jak Connor | Processors | Jan 5, 2026 9:35 PM CST

AMD has kicked off CES 2026 by pulling the curtain back on a new family of processors designed to power the ambitious exponentially evolving future of artificial intelligence software.

AMD unveils a new class of Ryzen AI Max CPUs, the new powerhouse is here

Team Red gave details on the new AMD Ryzen AI Max and AI Max Pro series processors, which will be coming in the form of five SKUs. At the top of the list is the AMD Ryzen AI Max+, which sports 16 cores 32 threads with up to 5.1 GHz max boost clocks, 80MB of cache, 50 peak TOPS, 40 graphics cores, and 60 TFLOPS. The Max+ will be coming in three SKUs, the 395, 392, and 388.

The Ryzen AI Max has two SKUs, the 390 and 385, with the 390 being the beefier out of the two with 12 cores and 24 threads, a boost clock of 5.0GHz, 50 TOPS, 32 graphics cores, and 48 GPU TFLOPS. AMD is also touting the Max+ series of the processors to have 1.4x faster AI performance in tokens per second, 1.8x faster at multitasking, 1.8x faster at content creation, and 1.6x faster at gaming.

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Continue reading: AMD unveils a new class of Ryzen AI Max CPUs, the new powerhouse is here (full post)

AMD's new Ryzen AI 400 Series includes the first desktop Copilot+ processor

Kosta Andreadis | Processors | Jan 5, 2026 9:31 PM CST

At CES 2026, AMD announced a new lineup of client processors, including the Ryzen AI 400 Series, which will power a wide range of laptops and even desktops this year. Building on the success of the Ryzen AI 300 Series, these CPU, GPU, and NPU chips are Copilot+ and AMD ROCm-ready with the integrated AMD XDNA 2 NPU offering up to 60 AI TOPS of performance.

AMD's new Ryzen AI 400 Series includes the first desktop Copilot+ processor

The 60 AI TOPS is only available in the flagship Ryzen AI 9 HX 475 model, which includes 12 Zen 5 Cores with 24 Threads, a Max Boost clock speed of 5.2 GHz, 36MB of Cache, and 16 RDNA 3.5 Compute Units. AMD notes that the integrated Radeon GPU features an impressive GPU Boost Clock speed of 3.1 GHz, which should deliver faster gaming performance than previous generations.

As part of its announcement, AMD provided benchmark results and performance comparisons between the Ryzen AI 9 HX 470 (which is also a 12 Core 24 Thread processor but with 55 TOPs) and the Intel Core Ultra 9 288V running at an efficient 30W.

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Continue reading: AMD's new Ryzen AI 400 Series includes the first desktop Copilot+ processor (full post)

MSI's new GeForce RTX 5090 32G LIGHTNING Z is a 1000W, extreme overclocking beast

Kosta Andreadis | Graphics Cards | Jan 5, 2026 8:03 PM CST

After a year of rumors and even a small teaser a year ago, MSI has finally brought back its flagship LIGHTNING series of graphics cards at CES 2026 with the new GeForce RTX 5090 32G LIGHTNING Z. It's an absolute beast, with cutting-edge liquid cooling, a default 800W OC mode, and an Extreme 1000W mode for those wanting the absolute fastest gaming GPU on the planet.

MSI's new GeForce RTX 5090 32G LIGHTNING Z is a 1000W, extreme overclocking beast

The MSI GeForce RTX 5090 32G LIGHTNING Z will be limited to 1300 units when it launches next month, and it will introduce several world-first features. Powered by two 16-pin PCIe connectors, the new GeForce RTX 5090 32G LIGHTNING Z is also the world's first GPU to include a full copper, full cover cold plate covering all components, which is one of the reasons why it's the world's first GPU to reach 1000W.

A liquid-cooled GPU, the main unit includes a vibrant 8-inch display (the GPU will ship with a complete kit for vertical mounting), another world's first, and a rigid carbon fiber backplate. As an all-in-one liquid-cooled GPU, it also sports a next-gen pump that increases liquid flow by an impressive 71% and pressure by up to 45% when compared to MSI's GeForce RTX 5090 SUPRIM LIQUID card.

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Continue reading: MSI's new GeForce RTX 5090 32G LIGHTNING Z is a 1000W, extreme overclocking beast (full post)

Intel's new Panther Lake CPUs powered by new in-house Intel 18A process node on American soil

Anthony Garreffa | Processors | Jan 5, 2026 7:45 PM CST

Intel's new Core Ultra Series 3 "Panther Lake" CPUs were unveiled at CES 2026 today, the first AI PC processors fabbed on its new in-house Intel 18A process node, designed and manufactured on American soil.

Intel's new Panther Lake CPUs powered by new in-house Intel 18A process node on American soil

The new Panther Lake CPUs are a big moment for Intel in many ways, with one of the major ones being that Intel Foundry fabbed the new Core Ultra Series 3 processors on US soil, a big win for the semiconductor arm of Intel against TSMC. The new Intel 18A process is the most advanced semiconductor process ever developed and manufactured in the United States.

The compute die, which houses the CPU and NPU, is fabbed on Intel 18A, but the IO and GPU aren't -- they're either fabbed on TSMC or possibly on the Intel 3 process node (especially for lower-tier SKUs). This detail was released through leaks in October 2025, but now Panther Lake is (nearly) officially here.

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Continue reading: Intel's new Panther Lake CPUs powered by new in-house Intel 18A process node on American soil (full post)

Teyon, the dev behind the Terminator and Robocop FPS games, is hiring for a new action RPG

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Jan 5, 2026 7:37 PM CST

Polish game dev and publisher Teyon is gearing up for a new project, and recent job listings give some clues on what it could be.

Teyon, the dev behind the Terminator and Robocop FPS games, is hiring for a new action RPG

Teyon, the team mostly known for the favorably-reviewed RoboCop: Rogue City and Terminator Resistance video games, is currently working on a new unannounced game. No concrete info has been revealed so far, but two recent job listings give some clues, revealing that the project will be a "modern action RPG" for both PC and consoles.

Another big clue is that the game will have animals, including wild wolves and dogs. Terminator Resistance also had a stray dog, and dogs in general were important to the story. It's unclear what the game actually is--whether it's another Terminator sequel--however Teyon's typical fare of 80s machismo movie adaptations may lean towards something like Don Coscarelli's Beast Master.

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Continue reading: Teyon, the dev behind the Terminator and Robocop FPS games, is hiring for a new action RPG (full post)

Intel's new Arc B390 GPU on Panther Lake CPUs: beats AMD and Qualcomm, up to 77% faster gaming

Anthony Garreffa | Processors | Jan 5, 2026 7:17 PM CST

Intel has launched its new Core Ultra Series 3 "Panther Lake" CPUs at CES 2026, packed with its heavily upgraded Arc B390 integrated GPU that provides RTX 4050 levels of gaming performance.

Intel's new Arc B390 GPU on Panther Lake CPUs: beats AMD and Qualcomm, up to 77% faster gaming

The new Arc B390 inside of the new Panther Lake CPUs is providing up to 77% more gaming performance over the integrated GPU inside of the Core Ultra 9 288V "Lunar Lake" CPU, and up to 53% faster AI versus the 288V.

The first foray for Intel's new GPU architecture is the Arc B390 inside Panther Lake, with the flagship Arc B390 providing some rather kick ass performance over its predecessors, and more importantly, its competitors.

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Continue reading: Intel's new Arc B390 GPU on Panther Lake CPUs: beats AMD and Qualcomm, up to 77% faster gaming (full post)

Intel Core Ultra Series 3 CPUs launched at CES 2026, Panther Lake powers next-gen laptops

Anthony Garreffa | Processors | Jan 5, 2026 6:55 PM CST

Intel has officially released its new Core Ultra Series 3 "Panther Lake" CPUs at CES 2026, its first processors fabbed on its in-house Intel 18A process node, designed and manufactured on American soil.

Intel Core Ultra Series 3 CPUs launched at CES 2026, Panther Lake powers next-gen laptops

The new Intel Core Ultra Series 3 processors will be powering over 200 designs from its partners, with Intel saying that its new Panther Lake CPUs will be the "most broadly adopted and globally available AI PC platform Intel has ever delivered".

Intel's new Core Ultra Series 3 mobile processors will include new Core Ultra X9 and Core Ultra X7 processors with powerful CPU and GPU performance.

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Continue reading: Intel Core Ultra Series 3 CPUs launched at CES 2026, Panther Lake powers next-gen laptops (full post)

Todd Howard praises Fallout London team: 'That is so hard to pull off'

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Jan 5, 2026 6:36 PM CST

Bethesda's Todd Howard is aware of the Fallout London total conversion mod, and is quite impressed that the FOLON team was able to finish and release the mod to the public.

Todd Howard praises Fallout London team: 'That is so hard to pull off'

Total conversion mods are typically few and far between, but Fallout London is among the most acclaimed. The ambitious DLC-sized mod adds a 25-hour campaign set entirely in London, complete with 200 quests, new factions, and an extended dialog system. Interestingly enough, one of the volunteers working on FOLON actually turned down a job at Bethesda to keep working on the mod.

Since mods are the lifeblood for Bethesda games, it's only natural for bigwigs like Todd Howard to take notice of big projects like Fallout London, and now he shares his thoughts on the mod and the overall positive fan reception around it (side note: FOLON has been downloaded over 1 million times).

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Continue reading: Todd Howard praises Fallout London team: 'That is so hard to pull off' (full post)

MSI releases all-new Prestige series laptops powered by Intel's new Panther Lake CPUs

Anthony Garreffa | Laptops | Jan 5, 2026 6:00 PM CST

MSI has revealed its all-new Prestige series laptops, redesigned and tweaked, powered by Intel's new Core Ultra 3 series "Panther Lake" CPUs.

MSI releases all-new Prestige series laptops powered by Intel's new Panther Lake CPUs

The new MSI Prestige 16 and 14 laptops feature an all-new design language that has smoother, more rounded contours and refined craftsmanship that makes it feel premium both inside and out. The bigger Prestige 16 weighs only 1.59kg, while the Prestige 14 weighs just 1.32kg marking a 22% reduction in weight from the previous-gen Prestige 14, impressive.

MSI says that its new Prestige series laptops are ready with next-gen graphics and AI performance from the new Intel Panther Lake processors, with the Prestige series packing a high-capacity 81Wh battery that the company says is good for over 30 hours of 1080p video playback, providing true multi-day usage.

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Continue reading: MSI releases all-new Prestige series laptops powered by Intel's new Panther Lake CPUs (full post)

Bethesda's Todd Howard shares views on AI: 'We want to protect human artistry'

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Jan 5, 2026 5:35 PM CST

Bethesda may not be using AI to generate things for its games, but studio head Todd Howard does see the technology as a tool of sorts...yet he is a strong believer that human-created art will always come first.

Bethesda's Todd Howard shares views on AI: 'We want to protect human artistry'

As the games industry starts to use AI in various ways to help create new projects, some executives are taking a people-first approach to the technology. When asked about how AI could help accelerate the multi-faceted world of games development, Bethesda's Todd Howard delivered a neutral take, saying that it's another potential tool, but it will always require a human operator in order to really make use of it.

In a recent interview with IGN, Howard essentially says that Bethesda Game Studios is continually iterating on and building its game engine tech--especially the newest version of the Creation Engine that will power The Elder Scrolls 6. Innovation won't come at the cost of creativity, though, and Howard says that the studio "wants to protect human artistry."

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Continue reading: Bethesda's Todd Howard shares views on AI: 'We want to protect human artistry' (full post)

KIOXIA showcases memory and SSD solutions for AI, mobile, and data centers at CES 2026

Kosta Andreadis | Storage | Jan 5, 2026 10:02 AM CST

As the inventor of flash memory and a leader in memory and storage, KIOXIA is bringing its extensive lineup of memory and SSD solutions to CES 2026 in Las Vegas. KIOXIA notes that its lineup covers all corners of the technology market, from intensive AI workloads through to large-scale data centers, automotive systems, and mobile devices.

KIOXIA showcases memory and SSD solutions for AI, mobile, and data centers at CES 2026

At CES 2026, KIOXIA will showcase its products and demonstrate its technology. This includes a first-hand look at how the company's groundbreaking, scalable BiCS FLASH 3D flash memory technology delivers performance, density, and power efficiency across workloads and requirements.

KIOXIA will also showcase how its innovative SSDs leverage open-source software it helped develop to optimize and accelerate AI applications and workloads. Plus, there'll be a closer look at its high-speed Automotive UFS 4.1 solution, alongside the recently announced BG7 Series of NVMe SSDs aimed at the consumer PC OEM market.

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Continue reading: KIOXIA showcases memory and SSD solutions for AI, mobile, and data centers at CES 2026 (full post)

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