AMD is preparing a performance-refresh of its most powerful mobile processors, codenamed “Gorgon Halo,” for late 2026. Following the initial Strix Halo series, new specifications leaked by HKEPC detail the Ryzen AI Max+ 400 lineup, headlined by a flagship Ryzen AI Max+ 495 model capable of reaching up to 5.2 GHz on its CPU and 3.0 GHz on its integrated Radeon graphics.
This refresh aims to maintain AMD’s lead in the high-performance mobile APU segment, offering system manufacturers a drop-in upgrade for existing designs to create even more powerful thin-and-light laptops and gaming handhelds.
The Specs: Higher Clocks Within the Same Power Envelope
The leak indicates that “Gorgon Halo” is a half-step update, retaining the same fundamental architecture as the current Strix Halo series: Zen 5 CPU cores, RDNA 3.5 integrated graphics, and an XDNA 2 NPU. The key advancement is improved silicon quality, allowing for higher clock speeds within the same thermal design power (TDP).
According to the leaked spec table, the star of the show is the Ryzen AI Max+ 495. This 16-core, 32-thread chip is listed with a maximum CPU boost of 5.2 GHz and a GPU boost for the Radeon 8060S graphics of up to 3.0 GHz. Other models in the stack, like the Max+ 492 (12 cores) and Max+ 488 (8 cores), maintain a 5.0 GHz CPU boost with slightly lower GPU clocks.
Strategic Advantage: A Seamless Upgrade for Manufacturers
A critical detail from the report is that the FP11 packaging is unchanged. This means the physical and electrical interface of the new APUs remains identical to the current Strix Halo chips. For laptop manufacturers (OEMs), this translates to a major advantage: they can upgrade their existing high-end laptop designs to the new, faster processors without needing to redesign the motherboard or cooling system.
This allows OEMs to quickly bring refreshed, more performant models to market with lower development costs, potentially in time for the 2026 holiday season. The leak cites OEM sources expecting availability in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2026.
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Market Position: Dominating the High-End Integrated Graphics Space
The Gorgon Halo refresh underscores AMD’s strategy to own the premium segment for systems that demand serious graphics power without a discrete GPU. By pushing integrated graphics performance closer to entry-level discrete chips, these APUs enable super-thin laptops, advanced mini-PCs, and next-generation gaming handhelds to offer exceptional performance in a compact, efficient package.
This move keeps the pressure on Intel, whose next-generation mobile CPUs will also be rolling out in the same timeframe, and solidifies the “Halo” series as AMD’s answer to users who want desktop-class performance in a portable form factor.
Source: videocardz, HKEPC