Tech & Hardware 24 Hours

Last updated: August 25, 2026, 8:35 PM ET

Gamescom 2026: Networking & Displays

ASUS dominated Gamescom 2026 with a barrage of new hardware. The company unveiled the ROG Rapture GT-BN98, which it claims is the world's first Wi-Fi 8 gaming router, a quad-band 802.11bn Draft device designed to deliver next-generation wireless performance for demanding gamers. On the display front, the company expanded its lineup with three new OLED monitors, including the flagship ROG Swift OLED PG259QWS Ace, alongside the Strix OLED XG259QDPG Ace and XG259QDNS Ace models, further cementing its position as a leading OLED gaming monitor brand.

Gamescom 2026: PC Hardware & Peripherals

ASUS also introduced the fourth generation of its popular ROG Gladius IV Ace wireless gaming mouse at its extensive Gamescom press event. The company also launched the ROG Xbox Ally X20 handheld, which carries a $300 price premium over the standard model thanks to upgrades including an OLED display and TMR analog sticks; it is priced at $1,299.99. Meanwhile, HYTE announced that its Y50 RGB Essential Aesthetic Case is now available for purchase at $99.99, following its earlier debut at Computex. Razer is celebrating a milestone with its XBOX 25 Anniversary Collection, a limited-edition lineup of peripherals honoring 25 years of the Xbox brand.

Gamescom 2026: Software & Game Announcements

Gamescom Opening Night Live was packed with major game reveals. CD PROJEKT RED and Commodore announced a special edition Commodore 77 inspired by Cyberpunk 2077, blending retro computing aesthetics with the futuristic world of the game. The Witcher 3 received a Remastered announcement trailer, promising a slew of upgrades to visuals, performance, and gameplay for the acclaimed title. Ubisoft is taking a new direction with the franchise, dropping Rainbow Six: Tactics, a single-player, turn-based XCOM-style game that was previously leaked in January 2026. Focus Entertainment premiered the launch trailer for Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy during the show, just days before its release. Archetype Entertainment finally revealed that its sci-fi action RPG EXODUS will launch worldwide on April 7, 2027, for PlayStation, Xbox Series X/S, Steam, and the Epic Games Store.

Gamescom 2026: More Announcements

Atari and Springloaded revealed RollerCoaster Tycoon Wonderworks as a brand new entry in the long-running franchise. Focus Entertainment also unveiled Elta: Defy All Gods, an adrenaline-fueled action-platformer from Afterburner Studios, coming in early 2027 to PC, PlayStation, and Xbox Series X|S. Amplitude Studios announced Humankind 2, the sequel to the critically acclaimed 2021 strategy game, which is slated for a PC release in 2027. BBG Entertainment is rebooting the classic platformer MANIC MINER for an autumn release, following its work on remakes like Boulder Dash and Astrosmash.

PC Hardware & Components

Lenovo expanded its gaming portfolio with new LOQ Essential PCs and Legion Monitors, targeting gamers who are just beginning their journey. Corsair announced the iCUE LINK TITAN II Series of all-in-one liquid CPU coolers, available in RX LCD and RX RGB variants, promising quieter and higher-performance operation within the iCUE LINK ecosystem. Ben Q introduced the iScreenBar, the first monitor light bar designed specifically for the iMac, expanding its category-creating lineup. A new German-owned brand, VZMORE, will debut at IFA 2026 with the AX9 Max Mini PC, powered by AMD's Ryzen AI 9 HX 470 processors and focused on high-performance, quiet desktop computing.

Semiconductors & AI Infrastructure

At Hot Chips 2026, XCENA detailed the architecture and measured performance of its MX1 computational CXL memory architecture, which integrates memory expansion and near-memory computing for AI infrastructure. AMD announced it will offer the first Versal adaptive SoCs with native support for UCIe 1.1 interfaces, enabling low-power, high-bandwidth communication between chiplets. Intel Foundry is reportedly gaining a major customer, as SK hynix is said to be using Intel EMIB-T packaging for its next-generation HBM memory, a development revealed during Hot Chips 2026. In other news, the U.S. government is reportedly in talks with South Korea to encourage Korean chipmakers to invest in domestic memory production on American soil.

Apple Hardware

Apple made significant updates to its desktop lineup. The company debuted its first 2-nanometer chip, the M6, alongside the M5 Ultra, in new Mac mini and Mac Studio models, respectively, promising a leap in performance and AI capabilities. The new Mac mini is available with the all-new M6 or the more powerful M5 Pro, delivering a dramatic boost in performance in the same supersmall desktop design. The Mac Studio now features M5 Max and the all-new M5 Ultra, offering a monumental leap in AI performance and faster graphics for pro workflows. Ars Technica notes that these new desktops are designed specifically for local AI development, keeping in mind users who have been daisy-chaining Macs for AI workloads.

NVIDIA Ecosystem & Graphics

NVIDIA made several announcements across its ecosystem. The NVIDIA App will soon gain control options for Resizable BAR, according to GeForce Evangelist Jacob Freeman. GeForce NOW is adding DLSS 4.5 settings and Steam Machine support, along with new games, giving subscribers more control over streaming quality. Major developers including EA, Embark, and Ubisoft are supporting the upcoming RTX Spark PC platform, which launches this fall with support for major AAA titles. Remedy Entertainment's CONTROL Resonant is launching September 24th and is now bundled with select GeForce RTX GPUs, laptops, and PCs. NVIDIA RTX Remix has been upgraded with DLSS 4.5 Ray Reconstruction, and a new Painkiller RTX mod update has been released. A review of DLSS 4.5 Ray Reconstruction shows that the new AI-powered model uses 20% more parameters and 35% more compute, boosting image quality without sacrificing performance. In hardware news, a GeForce RTX 5060 with the GB205 die has appeared in a third-party AIB design, though the official card is based on the GB206 GPU with 3,840 CUDA cores and 8 GB of GDDR7 memory.

Science & Emerging Tech

The inaugural World Humanoid Robot Games saw runners breaking records, along with crashes and even flames, though the events proved less substantial than household chore challenges. Google's anti-nausea Motion Assist dots are finally rolling out on Android, currently appearing only on Pixels running Android. A new bootloader has been developed that lets users take the "Meta" out of the original Meta Quest, using a privilege escalation attack to grant "full control" and freedom from Meta's servers and apps. Arduino opened pre-orders for its VENTUNO Q edge AI platform, powered by the Qualcomm Dragonwing IQ8 Series, marking its most advanced edge AI platform to date.

Health, Science & Space

Ars Technica reports on the challenge of preserving glow-in-the-dark art and fashion, noting that understanding the unique photochemistry of such materials is key to their conservation, storage, and exhibition. In health news, officials confirmed that two unvaccinated people have died from measles in Pennsylvania, with officials noting that people are not familiar with the disease and don't fully understand its potential severity. A report highlights that manipulated images are widespread among lab supply companies selling antibodies, with image changes that would get a paper retracted found across roughly 17,000 products. In the field of radiology, AI won't replace radiologists, but it will dramatically change their jobs, according to a new analysis. Finally, SpaceX intends to invest up to $100 billion in a massive Louisiana spaceport, a project that CEO Elon Musk described as "a project like no other."