Xbox's Next Big Thing Is Now Multiple Devices, Not Just One Console
Xbox CEO Asha Sharma has told BBC News that Project Helix — the codename for Microsoft's next-generation gaming hardware — will be a "family" of devices rather than a single console.
"We've been hard at work on a great next generation and a great family of devices for Helix," Sharma said in the BBC interview (The Verge, 2026-08-28). That wording goes beyond what Microsoft said back in March, when Project Helix was announced as the codename for its "next generation console" — which sounded like one device.
Sharma became Xbox CEO after Phil Spencer left the role, a change that surprised many in the industry. In early March, she posted on X that she had met with Team Xbox to discuss Project Helix, then described as the codename for Microsoft's next-generation console (Game Informer, 2026-03-05). The "family of devices" language in this week's interview is the first public sign that the plan has grown, or at least that Microsoft is now willing to say so openly.
When the BBC asked whether Project Helix will be a console without a disc drive, Sharma did not directly answer (The Verge, 2026-08-28). At the same time, Microsoft has announced a program called Xbox disc-to-digital, which would let users convert their physical game discs into digital copies. Taken together, the two signals suggest Microsoft is heading toward an all-digital approach, though the company has not confirmed that outright.
Jason Ronald, Xbox's VP of next generation, has said that "Project Helix will be available as a 1st party Xbox console" (The Verge, 2026-08-28). Ronald also said at a conference in March 2026 that Project Helix would not reach alpha — an early testing stage for new hardware — until 2027. That timing lines up with AMD's February 2026 statement that it would be ready to support a launch of the next Xbox in 2027. AMD, the company that makes the main processor for the current Xbox, announced a multi-year partnership with Microsoft in 2025 to work on "a portfolio of devices," including the next-generation console (The Verge, 2026-08-28).
On April 23, 2026, Xbox published a blog post titled "We Are XBOX" by Matt and Asha, stating that Project Helix will lead in performance and play both console and PC games (Xbox Wire, 2026-04-23). The ability to play PC games was reaffirmed in the latest BBC interview. A follow-up blog post on June 10, 2026, titled "Next 100 Days: XBOX Reset" by Asha and Matt, said that Xbox needs a new business model and partnerships for hardware while staying committed to Helix, streaming, and devices (Xbox Wire, 2026-06-10).
Sharma told the BBC that "efficiency" and "affordability" are top priorities for Project Helix (Pure Xbox, 2026-08-26). In a separate interview, she said that rising prices for memory and storage — the components that let a console hold game data and run it quickly — are forcing the Xbox team to rethink its business model to keep Project Helix affordable (Thurrott.com, 2026-06-10).
The broader context here is that Microsoft is doing three things at once: expanding Helix from one console to a family of devices, committing to play PC games alongside console games, and dealing publicly with the challenge of keeping the hardware affordable. The June "XBOX Reset" post framed the need for a new business model and partnerships, and the August interviews sharpen that concern into specific cost pressures on parts. Building a family of devices around shared processor technology from AMD, with different levels of performance and storage at different prices, is one plausible way to balance affordability with offering multiple products. Sharma's decision not to confirm or deny a discless design, paired with the disc-to-digital program, suggests Microsoft is handling the shift away from physical game discs carefully, knowing that some Xbox owners still value them.
What Microsoft has not said is how many devices make up the "family," what sets them apart from each other, and whether the 2027 testing-to-launch timeline will hold. AMD's readiness and Ronald's alpha target both point to a late 2027 launch, but neither company has committed to a public release date. The connection between Microsoft's multi-year AMD partnership from 2025, the "portfolio of devices" language from that same year, and Sharma's "family of devices" language in August 2026 suggests the multi-device plan has been in the works for at least a year, even as the public messaging shifted from one device to many.
