Last week I sat down with the PlayStation and AMD executives to talk about their many years of cooperation and what they hope to achieve on PlayStation 5 and on. During this intimate dinner, I talked to Mark Cervali, a leading architect PS5 and PS5 Pro in Sony Interactive Entertainment, as well as Jack June, SVP, GM, computing and graphic groups in AMD.
Sony PR said the conversation would not touch on any other generation topics, but in accordance with our discussion, the next generation, the next generation was a common phrase. It is difficult to understand how these successes will not find on a possible PS6 or even highlighted PlayStation (offline, unlike the PlayStation portal tied to the PS5 console).
What is the Amethyst project? Cooperation AI Sony and AMD for Games
The big theme of the dinner was the Amethyst project, which was briefly revealed during the PS5 Pro technical seminar at the end of last year. The purpose of Amethyst, which started developing in 2023, when the PS5 Pro was largely completed, is to use AI and machine training to make games and work better.
Amethyst combines what AMD learned from its RDNA Road Map using PSSR Sie or PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution on PS5 Pro to create more perfect machine learning architecture. The goal is to support a broad library of models that will help developers improve their games.
“(Amethyst) will support the chatgpt if the developers want it,” Sirny said. “This is not what we work on, we are working (over) networks that know about details and pixels and edges to stretch the equipment capabilities as soon as possible.”
Why Amethyst for code name? This is a combination of PlayStation Blue with AMD Red, which creates amethyst purple. This synergy has been embodied by a 100-km, a collapsible amethyst statue that is displayed in the corner of our dining room.
“Processing based on machine learning is the future,” the heart told me. With Amethyst, Sony, and AMD, they strive for “less pixels, the most beautiful pixels in conjunction with machine libraries to increase the resolution or add shots or help different ways with Ray tracking.”
How Machine Training Improves PS5 Pro and Future PlayStation Consoles
These three aspects – all stand out the features of last year’s PlayStation 5 Pro, but Sony and AMD seek to push it further through AI models. For example, developers will be able to make a game with a smaller resolution, such as 1080P, and machine training equipment will use its Super Resolution library to scale the 4K image. Because the original is displayed with a smaller resolution and a simpler number of pixels to control, the equipment can run it smoother, making the games better play potentially higher limits.
“We in PlayStation started thinking about what justification would be ideal for future consoles and which algorithms will work on it,” the Chana continued, “and I don’t talk about direct needs, we just shipped PS5 Pro, I talk about years old.” My ears were tearful. Sirny said that each console takes about four years of development. When Amethyst started developing in 2023, we could see a new device, perhaps in 2027.
“We knew we needed to go with machine training because the law of the masonry decreases … The old school method of adding more performances, more transistors, more flops, more memory bandwidth,” June added. Their hope is that machine training will make these success more accessible to everyone. This is emphasized by the fact that amethyst will be open to others to use, continued the heart.
“Obviously, we want to use these technologies on our consoles, but these technologies are freely available to any of the AMD customers,” Sirny said. “There is no restriction on how you can use anything.”
It is worth noting that most recently, Xbox confirmed its own partnership with AMD for the production of future equipment.
Joon commented several times that they are “really trying to find the best technology at the most affordable price.” However, each generation of games, both software and equipment, is becoming more and more expensive. I asked if they believed that machine training would change this scheme, but they, together with PR AMD, quickly replied that they didn’t talk about the price.
One of the most exciting aspects of this was, although they planned to implement this new software in the coming years, they overcame.
“(We) were looking for an algorithmic breakthrough that we could take advantage of the road,” said the Sir. – The SIE/AMD joint team has done this in about nine months.
The second way they exceeded the expectations was that they would not need future equipment and all this power to launch it, the heart said: “It turns out that the algorithm can be implemented in the current generation.”
Jointly developed algorithms have already been released AMD under its latest AI UPSCALING Tech technology, Fidfitalfx Super Resolution 4 on PC, but what is really interesting for console gamers is that Sony is now in the process of implementing it on PS5 Pro with the launch of the next year.
The sulfur cleaned some of the assumptions: “This is not a reduction in the algorithm, it is a complete version with a jointly developed super-permissive.”
What about PS5 owners? Why are these modernization AI exclusive for PS5 Pro
To be understood, Amethyst is not just in increasing game permission with AI. The next step of the project is machine training on virtual shots and tracing ray. PC -Guymers will take advantage of FSR Redstone to see these two other performance in the second half of 2025.
“In fact, it’s a little different in the approach because I try to do is prepare for the future, the next generation of consoles,” said Serge. It is clear that AI plays a major role in the next generation game consoles.
While PC gamers will use FSR, Cerny specified that PlayStation Gamers will see “the algorithm implementation as FSR and the implementation of the algorithm as a spectral”, which is a machine learning brand.
“But the fact is that they will be unusually close because we want the developers of the games to interact,” Sirny said.
Run the PS5 next to the PS5 Pro next to the Slim PS5.
It is clear that the PS5 Pro see the performance increase, and their games will look “much clearer,” said Sirny – unfortunately, the owners of the base PS5 will not see any of these benefits.
“PS5 does not have 300 computing points,” the sulfur said. It is also unclear what functions will find their way to a professional. “Perhaps at this point only a super resolution. We are developing so many algorithms, many of which have not been developed taking into account this particular equipment.”
Cerny continued to note that the PS5 Pro is capable because it sits around AMD RTX 9070 or RTX 9070 XT GPU for performance. “In terms of Sie, we do not look at the predefined PS5 Pro equipment, and therefore it complicates the implementation of these algorithms,” said the heart, “we are really focused on the future when the equipment is available together.”
So, when will we see the Sony and AMD’s amthyst fruits?
What I needed to know the most, this: if I can take it on it? When will I play a game that uses Project Amethyst? Sirny said that this year, developers will receive early versions of the developed network, and we must see how they publish somewhere next year.
“We already have 65 games on FSR 4. We have committed 75 games. I think we are ahead of this schedule,” June added. And it seems that developers should not be too difficult to switch when working on their updates, because “it is compatible with FSR3 in terms of API”.
A lot of this comes down to game developers that introduce new software into their games or draw an old game to take advantage of it. I asked how it would affect old games that may not have an active development scene at the moment. For example, in Xbox, old games automatically get an increase in frame speed and HDR sales, just running on new equipment, without the support of the developers.
“If (developers) do this on their side, the new algorithm is the replacement of the entry for the current PSSR. So when they pay the game, they will get a new algorithm. There is still a question” whether it is automatically “and that’s what we look at,” said Cherni.
Suffice it to say that this is definitely what we will have to watch and experience when amethyst begins to unfold.
At the same time, Sony implements the QA test team to monitor the frames and materials generated by AI models. If the frames and pixels are made by the hands of the developers, they want to make sure that everything is displayed correctly.
“And so the type of things we need to teach people to look and see,” said Jeff Conell, General S3, CVP, AMD. “(If) a spider-man (this) sitting on the building, and it rotates very quickly, we stop and you look at the building. All the windows lined up or they leaned everywhere? You look at the power line, you look at such things.”
Will the scale of AI game features for future PlayStation game games?
It is still unclear what future equipment we will actually see everything that works – the successor PS5 remains a mystery – but one of the trends in the gaming industry is a powerful pocket. In fact, Xbox announced its close cooperation with ASUS earlier this month when I went almost on the summer game Fest with Ally Rog Xbox.
It is worth noting that the Sony has no current, devotional gaming pocket. The closest device is the PlayStation portal since 2023, which can transmit games through PS5 or cloud. Currently, Nintendo is dominated by space with a recently released Switch 2, and Xbox introduces it at the end of this year, it seems only a matter of time before Sony throws a hat into the ring.
Another participant asked if the amethyst algorithms were scalable at the weaker, pocket equipment.
“The answer is yes,” Sirny said. “The algorithms are scale, and therefore a lot of what we do is we consider the possible range of algorithms and how much horsepower we can grow from it, but there are solutions both above and below the ones we look at.”
Kindelded is less priority for AMD, June added. “Now we focus on the desktop because I want to make the right desktop, building this foundation … And pocket for us is very important because I believe in continuous games, games on the go, and we are very focused on pocket affairs.”
