How AMD’s Collaboration with Microsoft Could Boost Its Competitiveness Against Nvidia

Alright, so Microsoft and AMD have teamed up again for the next Xbox. It’s kind of like they were meant to be, isn’t it? Anyway, they’ve been partners for a while, and AMD’s designing the chips for the next Xbox. You’d think it was obvious, but it’s a big deal for them—and maybe for us gamers too. AMD gets a nice, long relationship with Microsoft, means they’ll probably sell loads of chips. Like, tens of millions, maybe more, especially if Microsoft goes portable gaming. Exciting, right?

For us, the folks who love gaming, it’s like AMD is stepping up to say, “Hey, we’re still in the game!” Unlike Nvidia, which sometimes feels like it’s forgotten about gamers in favor of AI—no idea why. Anyway, Microsoft’s gaming consoles have always been more for the serious gamers, unlike Nintendo, which targets the… well, more laid-back crowd. Or lifestyle gamers, whatever that means.

Anyway—wait, where was I? Oh yes, Microsoft sticking with AMD is kind of like a warm blanket. Familiar, cozy. AMD CPUs and GPUs have been great for Xbox, even though Nvidia dominates PC world. It’s also supposed to smoothen backward compatibility, which is a fancy way of saying you’ll have plenty of games to play from day one—even if the shiny new titles aren’t too many. Game developers will probably love it since they’ve been working with AMD for Xbox for a while.

As for what’s actually inside the new Xbox, well, we’re all just guessing. AMD tends to roll out their new hardware around the same time as the Xbox launches, so maybe Zen 6 CPUs and RDNA 5 GPUs? Could be, who knows. AMD teased this UDNA thing recently. That might be in there, but maybe it’s not.

Oh, and handheld Xbox systems? Yeah, those are hinted at too. AMD’s mobile APUs have been used in stuff like the Xbox Ally X (love that name), so probably a new version of those will show up. Zen 6 APU, perhaps?

Now — and this part is wild — the software. Xbox traditionally runs on its own system software, but it’s getting closer to Windows with every generation. The latest Xbox Series X/S? That’s Windows 11 at its core. And Microsoft’s ally with Asus, the handheld system, runs Windows straight up. So, maybe the next Xbox will be more Windows-y? With some Xbox flair, of course, because branding.

Making Xbox and Windows a unified thing could be big. Linux is coming up strong in the gaming space, especially with devices like the Steam Deck making waves. Microsoft might want to leverage the Xbox name to strengthen gaming on Windows.

Then there’s all this console exclusivity business. Microsoft might pitch Xbox and Windows as a combined force against the SteamOS crowd. Perhaps proving there’s a simpler, more streamlined gaming option in Windows.

Now, our friends at AMD stand to gain a lot. Their gaming revenue was on a bit of a slide, what with Nvidia being all AI-focused and whatnot. Getting a heap of chip orders from Microsoft is a nice balance for them. Sure, Nvidia is ahead in ray tracing and AI stuff, but AMD is catching up. Slowly but surely, I think.

Nvidia, with its hands deep in AI and enterprise hardware, only makes 10% of its dosh from gaming now. So, AMD being the chip maker for Xbox—and maybe for Sony too?—keeps it relevant in gaming conversations. It’s a big deal for keeping them in our minds and the minds of developers.

This partnership won’t turn AMD into a trillion-dollar empire overnight, but it’s a solid step. Maybe, just maybe, it’s the nudge they need to give Nvidia some real competition in the high-end GPU market. Who knows? Stay tuned to Tom’s Hardware for more updates, if that’s your thing.