Kioxia's new 61.44TB SSD uses surprising tech that almost doubles write performance compared to previous gen

• Kioxia CM9 Series SSDs use 8th gen BiCS FLASH for enterprise performance
• Faster NAND speeds and power efficiency support AI and data centers
• Offers 61.44TB max, dual-port design, and massive write improvements

Kioxia has announced its CM9 Series PCIe 5.0 NVMe SSDs, marking the first enterprise drives built using its 8th generation BiCS FLASH 3D TLC memory.

With PCIe 5.0 and NVMe 2.0 support, the CM9 SSDs are designed to meet modern standards for data center storage by offering high-efficiency storage capable of supporting AI, machine learning, and high-performance computing.

These new SSDs feature CMOS directly bonded to array (CBA) architecture, an update designed to improve performance, power efficiency, and memory density. Kioxia’s use of CBA-based flash architecture promises faster NAND interface speeds and lower latency, which helps the drives deliver quicker data access and improved power efficiency.

Top-tier bit density

Compared to the previous CM7 series, the CM9 line shows increases of about 65% in random write speeds, 55% in random read, and 95% in sequential write speeds.

The CM9 SSDs, currently sampling to select customers, are built to handle read-intensive and mixed-use workloads in enterprise data centers and offer capacities of up to 61.44TB in 2.5-inch form and 30.72TB in E3.S configurations.

The drives are compatible with both the NVMe-MI 1.2c and OCP Datacenter NVMe SSD 2.5 specifications, and support dual-port configurations, making them suitable for enterprise environments where reliability and continuous access are critical.

Kioxia, which recently helped Linus Tech Tips smash the Pi calculation world record, says gains in power efficiency include roughly 55% better sequential read and 75% better sequential write performance per watt.

Although it’s early in the lifecycle of the CM9 Series, the specs and performance numbers suggest the company is aiming to strengthen its position in high-performance enterprise storage.

Axel Stoermann, Vice President and CTO for Embedded Memory and SSD, Kioxia Europe GmbH, said, “Alongside processing power and energy efficiency, memory is fundamental to enable AI, machine learning, and high-performance computing applications. The CM9 Series powered by our BiCS FLASH generation 8, is designed to address these storage demands, providing top-tier bit density, rapid data transfer, and outstanding power efficiency, all of which contribute to the superior performance of our SSDs."

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