AMD is launching the Ryzen AI 400 at CES 2026 as the next chip in the company’s CPU roadmap, with what appears to be a similar goal as the current Ryzen AI 300: Aim high on CPU performance, but with sufficient AI TOPS and battery life to attract mainstream laptop buyers, too. AMD said that the Ryzen AI 400 chips will power both Copilot+ laptops as well as “socketed desktops,” bringing their AI capabilities to desktop PCs as well. AMD also announced “Pro” configurations of most of the chips, designed to power enterprise PCs. AMD executives didn’t refer to the AI 400 by its expected codename, Gorgon Point, but the chip’s specs matched up with a leak inadvertently published last year: up to 12 cores and 24 threads using the Zen 5 architecture, with a boost clock that can hit 5.2GHz. The Ryzen AI 400 will achieve 60 AI TOPS, AMD promises, with 16 RDNA 3.5 GPU cores. On paper, that’s very similar to the current Ryzen AI 300 chip, which in PCWorld testing of the Ryzen AI 300 emerged as a surprisingly powerful competitor to the Intel Core Ultra 200 “Lunar Lake” as well as the Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite: somewhat comparable in battery life, but at the top of the heap in CPU benchmarks. Rahul Tikoo, senior vice president and general manager of AMD’s client business, said in a call with reporters that AMD aimed for “leadership performance across the CPU, the GPU, and the NPU,” plus “multi-day mobility” as well as “AI performance to enable the next wave of experiences.” The new Ryzen AI 400 series has higher CPU and GPU boost clocks, a higher supported memory speed, and extra TOPS. Still, it’s close enough to the Ryzen AI 300 that reporters asked if it was just “rebadged” silicon. It’s not, according to Rakesh Anigundi, director of product management at AMD, though improved performance arrives via improved firmware as well as manufacturing changes. The process technology used in the AI 400 is 4nm, or basically the same process technology used in the Ryzen AI 300. AMD is launching a total of seven Ryzen AI 400-series chips, ranging from a specialized Ryzen AI 9 HX 475 processor at the top of the stack, designed for gaming, down to the Ryzen AI 5 430 at the low end. The cores will be a mix of the full-fledged Zen 5 cores as well as the more efficient Zen 5c cores, in various configurations differentiated by core count, clock speed, and the number of graphics CUs as well as their speed. All of the Ryzen AI 400 chips tolerate anywhere from 15 to 54 watts of thermal design power, or TDP. AMD’s new Ryzen AI 400 chips include substantially more offerings than the original AI 300 series, which didn’t reveal the base clock speed at launch. It’s also interesting that all of the processors run at 2.0 GHz, but boost to different speeds. And yes, the Ryzen AI 9 HX 475 and 470 are nearly identical, save for the difference in NPU TOPS: 60 versus 55 TOPS. Ryzen AI 9 HX 475: 12 cores/ 24 threads, 2.0GHZ base clock/5.2GHz boost clock; Radeon 890M/16 CUs/3.1GHz Ryzen AI 9 HX 470: 12 cores/ 24 threads, 2.0GHZ base clock/5.2GHz boost clock; Radeon 890M/16 CUs/3.1GHz Ryzen AI 9 465: 10 cores/ 20 threads, 2.0GHZ base clock/5.0GHz boost clock; Radeon 880M/12 CUs/2.9GHz Ryzen AI 7 450: 8 cores/ 16 threads, 2.0GHZ base clock/5.1GHz boost clock; Radeon 860M/8 CUs/3.1GHz Ryzen AI 7 445: 6 cores/ 12 threads, 2.0GHZ base clock/4.6GHz boost clock; Radeon 840M/4 CUs/2.9GHz Ryzen AI 5 435: 6 cores/ 12 threads, 2.0GHZ base clock/4.5GHz boost clock; Radeon 840M/4 CUs/2.8GHz Ryzen AI 5 430: 4 cores/ 8 threads, 2.0GHZ base clock/4.5GHz boost clock; Radeon 840M/4 CUs/2.8GHz The question is whether the Ryzen AI 400 will remain at the top of the heap in terms of performance. In this, AMD was somewhat vague, claiming that in “responsive multitasking,” such as running a Microsoft Teams call with background blur enabled, the Ryzen AI 400 was 1.3X faster than the competition, or 1.7X faster in content creation. In this, AMD can only compare to the silicon its competitors have shipped; in this case, it refers to Intel’s Lunar Lake or Core Ultra 200 silicon. Head-to-head comparisons will have to wait until both companies ship their silicon in early 2026; AMD is claiming that Asus, Acer, Dell, HP and Lenovo, among others, have signed up. AMD said laptops from its customers would be available beginning in the first quarter, from thin-and-light laptops to gaming and content-creation PCs to, yes, desktops. Still, AMD’s benchmarks are impressive, both in content creation and in gaming. In gaming, however, AMD isn’t saying whether the games listed are technically “playable” (over 60 frames per second, generally) or whether any frame enhancement technologies were used. In a sense, however, its a win for gamers just to be able play some of these games on integrated graphics. (AMD’s configuration notes say that the Ryzen AI 9 HX 470 was used, with its integrated Radeon 890M GPU.) Clearly, the increased clock speed and NPU TOPS will be of benefit to consumers. However, the support for faster DRAM — 8533 MT/s — will be dependent on PC makers actually finding and buying that high-speed DRAM to add to customer devices. What’s not clear is whether AMD will be able to increase its market share in mobile, as it has done in desktops with its superb Ryzen X3D parts. Traditionally, AMD has held on to about 20 percent of the mobile market, according to analysts. “With this range of processors, OEMs can deliver AI PCs that are tailored to your specific need, while offering the best performance and robust on-device AI,” AMD’s Tikoo said. Read...

Just before the new year, an alert went out from Have I Been Pwned, a security website that monitors data breaches: A hacker surfaced with information taken from Wired accounts, reportedly stolen through the publication’s parent company, Condé Nast. The number of subscribers hit? 2.4 million. The lost details included email addresses and display names, as well as actual names, phone numbers, date of birth, gender, and physical addresses (or geographic location) for a smaller subset of users. This data was loaded into the Have I Been Pwned database on December 27, 2025, with the info dating back to September 2025. The hacker has also claimed to have stolen data related to other Condé Nast publications as well—40 million additional records, according to Ars Technica. Speaking of: If you’re into tech, a subscription to Wired is pretty common (at least at some point in your life)—as is one for Ars Technica, which is also owned by Condé Nast. But at this time, Ars Technica staff says its tech stack is run separately, and it should not be affected by this breach. As for the other Condé Nast publications possibly affected, here’s the company’s full brand list: AD allure Ars Technica bon appetit Conde Nast johansens (hotels / spas) Conde Nast Traveler epicurious Glamour GQ House & Garden La Cucina Italiana Pitchfork Self Tatler TeenVogue Them The New Yorker The World of Interiors Vanity Fair Vogue Vogue Business Wired If you or anyone you know is subscribed to these publications, you should be on the look out for: Phishing related to your current (or past) subscriptions. For example, a notice claiming your credit card didn’t charge you properly for a renewal. Phishing campaigns related to false products or falsely discounted products related to the type of publication you’re subscribed to. (Gadgets, fashion, etc.) Also be aware that if details about you, such as your physical address or phone number, are leaked, you could be at greater risk for scams through regular mail or phone calls. Not sure if you’re affected? Head over to the Have I Been Pwned website and input your email address. You can also sign up for direct email notifications any time your email address is part of a new breach or leak uploaded to the HIBP database. Some antivirus subscriptions include data breach monitoring, too. Read...

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We honour the best in news, sport, business and entertainment. Read...

Xero founder Rod Drury has been made a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to business and technology. Read...

The four new knights also include Xero founder Rod Drury, while one of three new dames is Royal Commission of Inquiry chair Coral Shaw. Read...

Meta has bought Singapore AI start-up Manus, aiming to embed its autonomous general-purpose agent across consumer and business products. Read...

A Marlborough Sounds tourism operator is “extremely distressed” by restricted access road closures, leaving them cut off from customers at the start of the peak summer season. Read...