CES 2025 was all about pushing the limits of power in AI and chip design. While NVIDIA's RTX 5000 series GPUs stole the show with their groundbreaking performance, AMD and Intel showcased hardware that signals a shift towards maximizing raw power over efficiency—a stark contrast to recent trends.
NVIDIA RTX 5000 Series: The Performance Leader
NVIDIA's new Blackwell architecture powers the RTX 5000 series, delivering a significant leap over its predecessors. The flagship RTX 5090 boasts:
- CUDA Cores: 21,760
- VRAM: 32 GB GDDR7
- Memory Bandwidth: 1,792 GB/sec
The card delivers nearly double the performance of the RTX 4090, excelling in demanding 4K ray-tracing scenarios. In Cyberpunk 2077, for example, the RTX 5090 hit 240 fps with DLSS 4, compared to 108 fps on the RTX 4090.
However, these numbers come at a cost, with the 5090 consuming up to 575 watts of power and requiring a 1,000-watt power supply.
While the AI-generated frames from DLSS 4 create a smoother experience, they’ve sparked debate among gamers over the authenticity of "false frames."
The mid-tier RTX 5070, priced at $549, claims to rival the 4090 in fps performance with similar AI enhancements, though its rasterized power without DLSS 4 falls short.
AMD Ryzen AI Max
AMD introduced its Ryzen AI Max chips, designed to bridge the gap between efficiency and capability. The top-tier Ryzen AI Max+ 395 features:
- 16 Zen 5 CPU Cores
- 50 TOPS AI Performance
- 40 RDNA 3.5 GPU Compute Units
These chips are built for mobile workstations, with AMD claiming they're 2.6 times faster in 3D rendering than Intel's Core Ultra 9 288V and competitive with Apple's M4 Pro.
AMD also teased its RDNA 4 GPUs, which include FidelityFX Super Resolution 4, an AI-powered upscaling technology aimed at competing with NVIDIA’s DLSS.
The Radeon RX 9070 and 9070 XT, debuting this quarter, mark AMD's focus on mid-range performance.
Intel’s Quiet but Solid Evolution
While Intel’s CES presence was less pronounced, its Core Ultra 200HX chips still made waves. The flagship Core Ultra 9 285HX offers 24 cores, speeds up to 5.5 GHz, and a TDP of 120 watts.
Though it scales back on AI performance with 12 TOPS compared to previous AI-focused chips, it’s positioned as a competitive option for high-performance and gaming PCs. However, Intel’s offerings may struggle to match AMD’s Ryzen AI Max in raw performance when paired with discrete GPUs.
The Future of High-Power Hardware
CES 2025 showcased a clear trend toward power-maximized designs, as NVIDIA, AMD, and Intel each doubled down on delivering unprecedented performance.
While efficiency remains a concern for some, the innovations on display indicate a new era where raw power reigns supreme in AI and graphics technology.
Whether it’s the energy-hungry RTX 5090, AMD's versatile Ryzen AI Max, or Intel's refined Core Ultra chips, these advancements promise to redefine what's possible in high-performance computing.
