AMD Collaborates on Processor Design for Xbox Next, Strengthening Partnership with Microsoft

Okay, so imagine this: Microsoft and AMD, right? They’ve decided to join forces again, kind of like an unlikely superhero duo for gaming. Just found out on Tuesday — they’re cooking up the next Xbox consoles and even some nifty portable gadgets. Sounds like a long-term fling, probably stretching over several years and more than one generation of gizmos.

Sarah Bond, who’s basically head honcho of Xbox stuff at Microsoft, was super hyped about it. She talked about it like, “We’re in it for the long haul with AMD, making cool stuff like new Xbox consoles for your living room and cool handhelds for, you know, wherever.” Imagine her with a mic drop moment.

So, here’s the kicker — this is the first time they’ve officially spilled the beans that a new wave of Xbox gear is in the works. And yeah, everything’s still banking on AMD’s special sauce — their processors. Better ones, actually. Backwards compatibility stays, so no worries about your game collection just yet. Zen CPU cores and Radeon graphics are sticking around. Kind of makes you feel all fuzzy inside, right?

Out of the blue, you might suddenly like this. I don’t know. It’s like they’re upping their game with AMD, pushing the boundaries of gaming graphics. We’re talking about visuals that suck you right into the game. And yes, your old favorites still hang on — it’s like the best of both worlds.

Microsoft’s being a bit cagey about when this new Xbox stuff is dropping. If they follow their usual playbook, we might hear something official in about 1.5 years. Remember when they teased the Xbox Series X back in 2019 and it finally hit the shelves in late 2020? So, guess what, Xbox Next could be a thing near the holiday season of 2026. Pure speculation here, but maybe they’re working on Zen 6 CPU cores and some wicked RDNA 5 GPU. Feels like guesswork, but exciting, right?

Here’s where it gets juicy. They’re talking about Xbox handhelds. Yeah! Like, Xbox but portable. Since the Steam Deck got people all giddy back in 2022, everyone’s wanting a piece of that pie. These handheld consoles are the new cool, niche as they are. But Microsoft’s smelling potential here and seems to be diving in with a tailored chip of their own. Spicy!

“The dream at Xbox? Play your games, anywhere, with anyone,” Bond said (again, picture the mic moment). They’ve got their fingers in all sorts of pies — consoles, handhelds, PCs, cloud magic, you name it. And this is just chapter one, my friend. Can’t wait to see what’s brewing.

Oh, and the plot thickens. Microsoft might just be pulling the strings to get Xbox and Windows to play nice together. Forget sticking to one device — we’re talking about a universe of games, all nicely wrapped up and ready for you, no matter where you are.

To wrap it up, they want you gaming, wherever, whenever. Xbox isn’t some rigid, one-store pony anymore. They’re even teaming up with the Windows squad to make sure it’s the go-to for gaming. Wild times ahead, right?