<img alt="The Steam Deck’s original APU, shiny and crisp on the Steam Deck’s motherboard." data-caption="The Steam Deck LCD’s “Aerith” APU. | Photo by Fritzchens Fritz” data-portal-copyright=”Photo by Fritzchens Fritz” data-has-syndication-rights=”1″ src=”https://platform.theverge.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/10/53420776536_b9dede69df_k.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&crop=0,0,100,100″ />
The Steam Deck is four and a half years old, and handheld gamers are eagerly awaiting a Steam Deck 2 – but Valve has consistently said it needs a new chip with a “generational leap” in performance and efficiency before building the sequel.
There’s some reason to believe that chip has now broken cover: AMD Gainsborough. But I’m a tad skeptical.
As leaker Moore’s Law is Dead and IT Home report, the latest AMD drivers have leaked the codename for a previously unknown chip: an “AMD Gainsborough.” The first Steam Deck chip was named “Aerith” after Final Fantasy VII‘s heartbreaking love interest, and Gainsborough is her last name. Plus, the chip …
Just hope the price stays reasonable. Handheld PCs have a habit of becoming luxury items way too quickly.
Love the FF7 references. If Gainsborough delivers, that’s a solid callback to the original Deck’s legacy.
Drivers leaked, sure, but AMD has toyed us with unreleased chips before. I’ll believe it when I see benchmarks.
Finally! The Aerith naming convention confirms it. Valve is serious about this generational leap for the next handheld.