Chip Crisis Puts Next Generation of Gaming Consoles to the Test

The impacts of the artificial intelligence boom have been felt across the electronics industry for awhile now, with competition for chips driving up prices for everything from laptops to smartphones. But perhaps one of the most dramatic price increases could soon be found in the next generation of gaming consoles.

Buried more than 90% of the way through a 3,200-word feature from Fortune about Microsoft CEO Asha Sharma's quest to save an ailing Xbox division, is a brief mention of how the company's internal projection for its next gen Project Helix console sits somewhere between $1,200 and $1,800. No further details were shared regarding the likelihood of that estimate actually coming to pass by the time of Project Helix's scheduled release in December of 2028.

What followed was a deluge of speculation and startled disbelief, surrounding what would represent an astronomical price tag for any gaming console. To put it in perspective, Xbox's last console cost $500 when its Series X was first released in 2020. Today, the latest edition of the Series X costs as much as $800, as an ongoing chip shortage has driven up costs for electronics across virtually every sector.

And, although a potential $1,800 price tag for the Helix is far from guaranteed at this point, the fact that it's even a possibility speaks to just how dire the current market has become for advanced hardware.

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