What just happened? Intel has given a demo of the Raptor Lake CPU that it confirmed in September can hit 6GHz straight out of the box. The company said it still can't reveal the official name of the processor, though we're pretty certain this will be the Core i9-13900KS.

Speaking to tech evangelist Alejandro Hoyos, Intel's Gaming Technical Marketing Lead Jason Xie demonstrated the chip, which can reach its 6GHz speed without needing to be overclocked. He displayed its credentials using a standard, off-the-shelf Corsair all-in-one cooler and an Intel RVP (reference validation platform) motherboard.

Xie used a 7-Zip benchmark running in the background alongside Intel XTU (Extreme Tuning Utility) and HWiNFO to show that no tricks were used to reach 6GHz. The chip does manage to reach that clock speed on a couple of threads but can't sustain it. When Hoyos asks why this might be, Xie says that staying at 6GHz depends on the environment, with influencing factors such as power budget, thermals, the software, and Windows not allocating to the right cores.

Xie also proved that the CPU offers the same performance when plugged into commercially available consumer motherboards---in this case, an ASUS Z790 mobo---with the same Corsair cooler.

The Intel Core i9-13900KS made a brief appearance in a video showing the Intel Core i9-13900K overclocked to a record 9GHz; the former is a speed-binned version of the latter. The KS model is shown with a Max TDP of 150W, though this is just the Processor Base Power (PL1), so the Max Turbo Power (MTP/PL2) will be much higher. For comparison, the Core i9-13900K has a base TDP of 125W and a max TDP of 253W.

The price and release date of the Intel Core i9-13900KS remain unknown, though rumors claim that the processor is set to arrive any day now. As for how much it will cost, the standard K model is $589, so an optimist might say $600, but a realist could point closer to $700.