AMD boss says Steam Machine is “on track” for early 2026 release amid ram shortages

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AMD CEO Lisa Su recently stated that Valve is expected to start shipping the Steam Machine early this year. This is the most specific timeframe given so far for the release of the gaming hardware.

Valve introduced the Steam Machine, a new controller, and a VR headset on November 12, 2025, but hasn’t yet said when it will be available or how much it will cost.

Su made these remarks while talking about AMD’s gaming business and how much money consoles might bring in the future. She shared the information as part of a general business forecast, not as a separate announcement about new hardware.

AMD earnings call hints at Steam Machine launch window

During the earnings call, Su reported that gaming revenue jumped 50% compared to last year, reaching $843 million.

Sales of our semi-custom products rose compared to last year, but fell slightly from the previous quarter, which was anticipated. Looking ahead to 2026, we project a substantial double-digit percentage decrease in annual revenue from our semi-custom system-on-a-chip business, as the current strong period for gaming consoles is expected to mature after seven years.

Good news for anyone excited about the Steam Machine! Valve has said they’re finally getting ready to ship the first ones, the ones with AMD inside, very soon – like, early this year. I’m really hoping to get my hands on one!

Valve hasn’t officially announced a release date for the handheld gaming PC, and they haven’t said how much it will cost. During an earnings call, AMD’s CEO, Lisa Su, also mentioned that Microsoft plans to launch the next Xbox in 2027.

The new Steam Machine is a gaming PC that aims to strike a balance between affordability and power. It runs SteamOS and is designed to be easier to use than building a typical desktop computer, while still delivering better performance than many basic gaming systems.

Talk about how much the device would cost really picked up last year when Linus Sebastian suggested it probably wouldn’t be priced like a typical $500 console. He based this on discussions he’d had with people at Valve.

Last year, Valve designers Lawrence Yang and Pierre-Loup Griffais discussed potential pricing for the system in an interview, but they didn’t reveal a specific number.

Griffais stated the company aimed for performance exceeding that of most PCs included in Valve’s hardware data, and went on to explain:

We considered that figure when we were designing the machine, so it may have changed slightly since then, but that’s roughly the right number, I believe.

We’re aiming to price our systems competitively with the cost of building a similar PC yourself. We want to offer a great deal, and we’re working to make that happen. However, it’s difficult to pinpoint an exact price right now due to various external factors and market conditions.

AMD announced this news as a global shortage of RAM is driving up the cost of computers, graphics cards, and storage devices.

Zotac, a well-known graphics card company, has cautioned that the current shortage of components could put companies like theirs out of business if the situation doesn’t improve.

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2026-02-04 17:55