News
Intel’s New Core i9 Desktop CPU Breaks Another Speed Record
The i9-14900K packs 24 cores and 32 threads of raw processing power.
Intel has broken another speed record with its latest desktop CPU. The company’s new Core i9-14900KS processor can reach speeds of up to 6.2GHz without overclocking, making it the fastest desktop CPU available to PC enthusiasts. The milestone beats another Intel record from last year, where its last processor maxed out at a still impressive 6GHz.
In addition to record-breaking clock speed, the i9-14900KS also boasts a 24-core, 32-thread architecture along with a 36 megabyte Smart Cache, which is a proprietary Intel technology that shares cache memory between the different cores. Intel says the feature allows for “powerful performance in gaming and content creation workloads”.
The i9-14900K also makes use of Intel’s Thermal Velocity Boost, which is a feature of 11th generation and later Intel Core chips that maxes out the clock frequency by 100 MHz when temperatures are below 70 degrees C, or 158 degrees F.
As for real-world statistics, the company is confident that gamers will enjoy up to 15% better performance. Content creators will also be happy to hear that complex workflows will receive a massive 73% boost. The i9-14900KS is compatible with the latest Z790 and Z690 motherboards, but Intel recommends ensuring the bios is updated to ensure optimum results.
Also Read: Getting Started With Google Gemini: A Beginner’s Guide
Although the speed of Intel’s i9 is impressive, a team from ASUS ROG has already claimed another four world records by overclocking the new chip, pushing the CPU to a frankly astounding 9.1 GHz.
The Core i9-14900KS is available from stores today and starts at $700. The chip will be available for DIY PC builders as a standalone item but should soon find its way into OEM systems very soon.
News
Visa’s Return To Syria Starts With A Test And A Bank In Lebanon
Foreign visitors will be the first users to benefit, but whether Syria’s own banks and cardholders follow is still an open question.
Visa is returning to Syria. Its first live international card transaction in the country was a test rather than a launch, and the milestone event ran through a Lebanese bank.
The acquirer (the bank on the merchant’s side of a card payment) was Fransabank Lebanon, with Paymera as the other named partner. Nadim Moujaes, who heads a Fransabank Group subsidiary, describes the test as both the culmination of “longstanding efforts to link Syria back to international payment networks” and “the first step in a larger path”.
Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa makes the first electronic payment in Syria using a @Visa card at a store in Damascus, following the lifting of US sanctions on Syria. pic.twitter.com/lpAN7nQ6Fc
— Tech Magazine (@TechMGZN) August 27, 2026
“We are excited to have successfully tested live transactions today as we plan to enable international visitors to use their Visa cards while in Syria,” says Leila Serhan, Visa’s senior vice president and group country manager for the North Africa, Levant and Pakistan region. Although a significant first step, that plan doesn’t come with a hard date for when a visitor’s card will work normally.
Mohammed Safwat Raslan, governor of the Central Bank of Syria, says the test paves the way for international card acceptance in Syria and that maintaining strong compliance, risk management and operational controls will remain essential. Serhan likewise stresses that Visa has worked within applicable legal, regulatory and compliance requirements. For a test transaction, it seems there was a great deal of attention paid to the rules, with the entire operation being carefully managed.
Also Read: Lebanon’s 5G Era Begins With 150 Stations And A $1M Budget
The test is the latest step in a sequence that began in December 2025, when Visa announced a strategic roadmap to support Syria’s integration into the global digital economy. In February 2026 it hosted its first industry gathering of banks, ecosystem partners and policymakers in Damascus and, the same month, signed an agreement with Syria’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology in San Francisco.
Michel Kattouah, Paymera’s CEO, called the test “the return of international card acceptance,” but while that’s positive news, there’s no word yet on when a Syrian bank will issue a Visa card to a Syrian customer.
Visa’s Return To Syria Starts With A Test And A Bank In Lebanon
RØDE’s New DS3 Studio Arm Is Built For Heavier Creator Setups
Dubai Turns AI On Its Own Civil Service To Measure Productivity
Former Rockstar Director Dismisses GTA 6 Leaks As “Nothing Burger”
Qatar Airways Flies The World’s First Starlink-Equipped 787-9
Spotify Will Now Tell You If Your Favorite Artist Isn’t Real
Instagram Redraws Its Wordmark And The Internet Reads “Instagzam”
Anghami’s New Elite Program Starts With A Three-Decade Catalog
Qatar Is Getting Its First EV Plant, Built To Cope With Gulf Heat
Dubai’s aradus Wants AI To Run The Back Office Of Physical Trade
-
News3 weeks agoInstagram Redraws Its Wordmark And The Internet Reads “Instagzam”
-
News3 weeks agoAnghami’s New Elite Program Starts With A Three-Decade Catalog
-
News3 weeks agoQatar Is Getting Its First EV Plant, Built To Cope With Gulf Heat
-
News3 weeks agoDubai’s aradus Wants AI To Run The Back Office Of Physical Trade