Phison launches the first ever SSD controller to have built-in AI processing, along with some monstrous random data performance figures

When it comes to the world of PC gaming, a new SSD controller chip is unlikely to garner many headlines, as it’s normally the solid state drives they’re used in that are more newsworthy. But at this year’s Computex event, SSD specialist Phison announced a new controller that is faster and more power efficient than the competition, and even has integrated AI processing to speed up…well…AI processing.

The controller in question is the rather unassumingly titled E28, and it’s already picked up an award at Computex for its innovation. Manufactured on TSMC’s N6 process node, Phison says the E28 sports random read/write rates of 2,600K and 3,000K IOPS, respectively.

To put those figures into perspective, the best gaming SSD, the new WD Black SN7100, only goes up to 760K and 1,200K IOPS in each case.

Even compared to Phison E31T, its best consumer-grade SSD controller, the figures are still mighty. That little chip, shown above in the Corsair MP700 Elite, can reach random read/write rates of 1,500K and 2,200 IOPS. The E28 makes it look positively slow.

Phison also claims that the E28 controller uses 15% less power than other 6 nm SSD controllers, although it doesn’t specify which others it’s comparing the new chip to. Either way, less power means less heat, and that’s good news all around when it comes to ultra-fast storage.

As to why the E28 boasts such monstrously high random data rates, it’s because the chip is designed to be used in AI workloads and even comes with built-in circuitry for accelerating data flows during inference and token processing. Phison goes on to say that the integrated AI acceleration can reduce training times by as much as 50%, which is a pretty remarkable claim.

Of course, the E28 isn’t aimed at the general public, least of all PC gaming. It’s for mega-expensive, budget-be-damned AI workstations and servers, where the only thing that matters is raw performance.

However, while gaming SSDs are becoming ever faster in terms of sequential read/write bandwidth, they’re still surprisingly slow when it comes to random operations.

The difference between the two is that the former involves a stream of continuous data, whereas the latter involves reading or writing data from all over the drive, in a constantly varying pattern.

Random data performance is key to making any PC feel snappy and responsive, as sequential throughput is mostly only helpful for loading a game or a level. The fact that the E28 has a random performance that’s up to 240% faster than the current best gaming SSD means that a some point in the near future, ordinary SSDs are going to feel much more responsive.

So while the E28 is going to be the preserve of the professional AI market, its successors and siblings are going to bring all of its random goodness to the everyday world of PCs and gaming. Now that is newsworthy.