AMD CES 2026: MI500 promises 1000x AI performance and Ryzen AI 400 arrives in January

Lisa Su presented a clear vision at CES 2026: “AI Everywhere, for Everyone”. AMD is betting on democratizing access to high-performance AI, from datacenters to laptops.

MI500: The 1000x AI leap

The AMD Instinct MI500 series represents AMD’s largest generational leap in AI:

Specification	Detail
Architecture	CDNA 6 (next generation)
Process	2nm
Memory	HBM4E
Performance vs MI300X	Up to 1000x

Why it matters

A 1000x increase in AI performance means tasks that previously took days can be completed in minutes. For companies exploring AI:

Faster training: Models that took weeks now train in hours
Massive inference: More concurrent users with lower latency
Reduced costs: Better performance per watt means lower operating costs

Ryzen AI 400: AI on your laptop

For developers and professionals, the Ryzen AI 400 series is the most relevant announcement:

Feature	Detail
NPU	60 TOPS
Platform	Full AMD ROCm
Availability	January 2026 (first systems)
General OEM	Q1 2026

Full ROCm support

Most important for developers: the Ryzen AI 400 series supports full AMD ROCm, allowing AI workloads to scale from cloud to client.

AMD ROCm Scalability:
Cloud (MI500) ← → Workstation ← → Laptop (Ryzen AI 400)
         ↑                              ↑
    Training                      Local inference

Practical implications

Local AI development: You can develop and test models on your laptop
Privacy: Local inference without sending data to the cloud
Cost reduction: Less dependency on third-party APIs
Rapid prototyping: Faster iterations without waiting for cloud times

Ryzen AI Halo: Developer Platform

AMD announced the Ryzen AI Halo Developer Platform, a compact desktop PC (SFF) designed specifically for AI development:

Aspect	Detail
Form factor	SFF (Small Form Factor)
Purpose	Local AI development
Availability	Q2 2026

This platform is designed for development teams who want to:

Prototype models before deploying to cloud
Develop AI applications that run on edge
Have a dedicated AI development environment

Ryzen 7 9850X3D: Gaming with AI

For those working in game development or graphics applications, AMD also presented the Ryzen 7 9850X3D, continuing its line of 3D V-Cache processors optimized for gaming.

GENE.01: AMD’s humanoid robot

In collaboration with Generative Bionics, AMD showed GENE.01, a humanoid robot that demonstrates its chips’ capabilities for physical AI:

Real-time sensor processing
AI-powered motion planning
Integration with the AMD ecosystem

Comparison: AMD vs NVIDIA at CES 2026

Aspect	AMD	NVIDIA
Datacenter chip	MI500 (1000x vs MI300X)	Rubin (6 chips)
Client AI chip	Ryzen AI 400 (60 TOPS)	-
Dev platform	Halo Developer Platform	Full robotics stack
Humanoid robot	GENE.01	-
Focus	”AI Everywhere"	"Physical AI”

The key difference: AMD is focused on democratizing AI at all levels, while NVIDIA concentrates on being the dominant platform for high-performance AI.

Implications for businesses

For software development

Evaluate Ryzen AI 400 for development laptops (available January 2026)
Consider Halo Platform for dedicated AI development environments (Q2 2026)
Unified ROCm simplifies the path from local development to cloud production

For AI infrastructure

MI500 reduces costs for training and massive inference
The 2nm process means better energy efficiency
HBM4E enables larger models in memory

For technical leaders

AMD vs NVIDIA competition benefits buyers
Evaluate if your current stack can migrate to ROCm
Consider multi-vendor strategy to avoid lock-in

Want to evaluate if new AMD chips are right for your AI projects? Contact us for an architecture consultation.