Valve quickly updates its own Steam Machine update, recommitting to a 2026 launch despite AI woes: 'Nothing's really changed on our end'

Valve quickly updates its own Steam Machine update, recommitting to a 2026 launch despite AI woes: ‘Nothing’s really changed on our end’ | PC Gamer Skip to main content Open menu Close main menu PC Gamer THE GLOBAL AUTHORITY ON PC GAMES US Edition UK US Canada Australia Subscribe Sign in View Profile Sign out Search Search PC Gamer Games Hardware News Reviews Guides Video Forum More PC Gaming Show PC Gamer Clips Software Codes Coupons Movies & TV Magazine Newsletter Affiliate links Meet the team Community guidelines About PC Gamer PC Gamer Magazine SubscriptionWhy subscribe?Subscribe to the world’s #1 PC gaming magTry a single issue or save on a subscriptionIssues delivered straight to your door or device From$1Subscribe now Don’t miss these Hardware In the battle for our living rooms, Xbox Project Helix and the Steam Machine make for unlikely rivals on paper—but Microsoft’s new PC gaming-capable console might be raising some eyebrows at Valve Hardware Valve nixes less confident Steam Machine language, recommits to 2026 release Platforms Steam sale dates: When is the next Steam sale? Platforms Five new Steam games you probably missed (March 2, 2026) Handheld Gaming PCs No, AMD isn’t abandoning Ryzen Z1 chip series: Lenovo says it’s working with AMD on handheld gaming PC updates until 2029 Hardware Valve owns up to inaccurate Steam hardware survey findings, saying ‘VRAM on some graphics cards was not reported correctly’ Hardware AMD CEO suggests next-gen Xbox will launch in 2027—the premium console’s chip is ‘progressing well’ FPS Valve veteran imperiously scorns reports that it’s secretly finished Half-Life 3 and moving devs to other projects: ‘They’ve been done for months! They just sit on the game! They’re just relaxing!’ Hardware Here’s what we think the Steam Machine will cost now that Valve’s admitted ‘limited availability and growing prices’ have forced it to change plans Controllers Steam Controller re-review: A fresh look at Valve’s flawed but influential 10-year-old controller Graphics Cards Nvidia reportedly won’t release any new RTX graphics cards this year, and the RTX 60-series is said to be pushed back, too AI Steam updates AI disclosure form to specify that it’s focused on AI-generated content that is ‘consumed by players,’ not efficiency tools used behind the scenes Handheld Gaming PCs Valve breaks its silence on Steam Deck OLED scarcity and yes, it’s because of the RAM and storage crisis Platforms Five new Steam games you probably missed (February 23, 2026) Hardware ‘We expect supply constraints to be the headwind to gaming in Q1 and beyond’ says Nvidia, although it claims demand and inventory levels are ‘healthy’ PopularNEW: PC Gamer Clips!MarathonArc RaidersBest PC gearQuizzes Hardware Steam Machine Valve quickly updates its own Steam Machine update, recommitting to a 2026 launch despite AI woes: ‘Nothing’s really changed on our end’ News By Ted Litchfield published 7 March 2026 A recent blog post from Valve made it sound like the launch could slip into 2027. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. (Image credit: Future) Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter PC Gamer Get the PC Gamer Newsletter Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. You are now subscribed Your newsletter sign-up was successful Want to add more newsletters? Every Friday GamesRadar+ Your weekly update on everything you could ever want to know about the games you already love, games we know you’re going to love in the near future, and tales from the communities that surround them. Signup + Every Thursday GTA 6 O’clock Our special GTA 6 newsletter, with breaking news, insider info, and rumor analysis from the award-winning GTA 6 O’clock experts. Signup + Every Friday Knowledge From the creators of Edge: A weekly videogame industry newsletter with analysis from expert writers, guidance from professionals, and insight into what’s on the horizon. Signup + Every Thursday The Setup Hardware nerds unite, sign up to our free tech newsletter for a weekly digest of the hottest new tech, the latest gadgets on the test bench, and much more. Signup + Every Wednesday Switch 2 Spotlight Sign up to our new Switch 2 newsletter, where we bring you the latest talking points on Nintendo’s new console each week, bring you up to date on the news, and recommend what games to play. Signup + Every Saturday The Watchlist Subscribe for a weekly digest of the movie and TV news that matters, direct to your inbox. From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we’ve got you covered. Signup + Once a month SFX Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month! Signup + An account already exists for this email address, please log in. Subscribe to our newsletter As reported by The Verge, Valve has responded to confusion about its release schedule for the Steam Frame, Controller, and Machine, reaffirming that the devices will come out in 2026 despite the AI-driven squeeze on PC hardware. Valve’s 2025 year in review post initially made it sound like a 2027 delay was in the cards for the much-anticipated new tech.Valve communications lead Kaci Aitchison Boyle told The Verge that “nothing has really changed on our end,” while the year in review post at the heart of the story has been updated to have more definitive, confident language about a 2026 release window for the hardware.Original wording: “We hope to ship in 2026, but as we shared recently, memory and storage shortages have created challenges for us. We’ll share updates publicly when we finalize our plans!” You may like Valve nixes less confident Steam Machine language, recommits to 2026 release ‘Memory and storage shortages’ means Valve can’t give us pricing or release dates for the Steam Machine and Steam Frame Steam Machine will play the majority of Steam titles ‘at 4K 60 fps with FSR’, but some will require more upscaling than others, Valve says Updated wording: “We shared recently that there have been challenges with memory and storage shortages, but we will be shipping all three products this year. More updates will be shared as we finalize our plans.”I’m hoping Valve can deliver. The Steam Machine feels like a godsend in the current dog-eat-dog PC hardware space, one where some analysts are predicting the end of entry level machines altogether. But it’s not unreasonable to fear that the Steam Machine could fall prey to the very trends that make it so attractive. The AI datacenter-driven RAMpocalypse feels