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AMD says it’s helping Sony with the PlayStation 5’s ‘special sauce’

Published May 2nd, 2019 5:15PM EDT

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Sony is working on its next-gen console, and that’s hardly a secret at this point. But while the PlayStation 5 isn’t expected to drop this year, we keep seeing it pop up in more and more reports. The newest teaser comes from AMD, which confirmed that it’s making the PS5’s processor.

“What we have done with Sony is really architect something for their application, for their special sauce,” AMD CEO Lisa Su told CNBC. “It’s a great honor for us. We’re really excited about what the next generation PlayStation will do.”

The company did not reveal what this “special sauce” is, and it’ll be a while until Sony reveals the PS5’s real secrets. Earlier this year, Sony confirmed in an interview that the next-gen console will deliver improved performance and graphics thanks to new AMD chips. The PS5 will also ship with a built-in SSD that should improve load times significantly. Finally, the PS5 will be backward compatible with the PS4, meaning that all current and future PS4 titles will work on the new hardware.

AMD’s gaming interests don’t stop at Sony, however. Su also said that AMD is working with Google on the newly announced Stadia gaming platform. Gaming is a long-term and “good secular” growth market for AMD. The company is looking at a “big year” ahead, the CEO said. “We view it as a significant product cycle, and as we go three to five years forward, we have a lot of things in the hopper,” she said, adding that AMD is working on many products.

Su said AMD would release a new Ryzen chip in mid-2019 as well as an Epyc processor for data centers. As for the PS5, you shouldn’t expect any announcements at the upcoming E3 2019 event this summer.

Chris Smith Senior Writer

Chris Smith has been covering consumer electronics ever since the iPhone revolutionized the industry in 2008. When he’s not writing about the most recent tech news for BGR, he brings his entertainment expertise to Marvel’s Cinematic Universe and other blockbuster franchises.

Outside of work, you’ll catch him streaming almost every new movie and TV show release as soon as it's available.