KIOXIA launches CM9 Gen5 SSDs with up to 61TB, 3.4M IOPS, and better power efficiency—designed for AI, HPC, and modern data centers.
KIOXIA has introduced a new line of enterprise-grade SSDs, the CM9 Series, designed to address growing demands in AI, machine learning, and high-performance computing. These SSDs are the first to incorporate the company’s latest flash memory architecture.
KIOXIA CM9 PCIe Gen5 Features and Performance
The CM9 Series is built on KIOXIA’s 8th generation BiCS FLASH, a 3D TLC flash memory with a newer architectural approach called CBA (CMOS directly Bonded to Array). This shift allows for more efficient connections between memory and control circuitry, resulting in better power use, increased storage density, and higher data transfer speeds.
For enterprises scaling up their data center operations, this means a potential increase in performance while keeping power consumption in check, which is a key factor as workloads scale in complexity and size. KIOXIA reports that compared to its previous generation of drives, the CM9 Series delivers up to 65% faster random write speeds and 55% faster random reads. Sequential write speeds see a near-doubling, with improvements close to 95%. These specs will allow them to handle demanding data center workloads, offering strong potential performance across sequential and random access tasks.
Specifically, sequential speeds top out at 14.8GB/s for reads and 11GB/s for writes, based on 128 KiB block sizes at a queue depth 32. For random workloads, the drives deliver up to 3.4 million IOPS for reads at QD512 and 800,000 IOPS for writes at QD32 using 4 KiB block sizes. These figures reflect a design focus on high-throughput applications and rapid access for mixed-use environments.
These gains also translate into better energy use. In sequential operations, the new drives reportedly offer 55% better read efficiency and a 75% improvement in write efficiency.
KIOXIA CM9 Form Factors, Support, and Reliability
The drives will come in configurations for different endurance needs: 1 DWPD for read-heavy scenarios, and 3 DWPD for mixed-use environments. While full details on capacities and form factors haven’t been finalized, KIOXIA did reveal that the 2.5-inch version could offer up to 61.44TB, while the E3.S form factor may reach up to 30.72TB.
Regarding specs, the drives comply with PCIe Gen5 and NVMe 2.0 standards, NVMe-MI 1.2c, and the OCP Datacenter NVMe SSD 2.5 specification. Support for 2.5-inch and E3.S form factors provides dual-port connectivity for increased redundancy and flexibility in enterprise environments.
| Specification | Details |
|---|---|
| Interface | PCIe 5.0, NVMe 2.0, NVMe-MI 1.2c, OCP Datacenter NVMe SSD 2.5 |
| Form Factors | 2.5-inch and E3.S |
| Dual-Port Support | Yes |
| Endurance | Read-Intensive (1 DWPD), Mixed-Use (3 DWPD) |
| Sequential Read Speed | Up to 14.8 GB/s (128 KiB, QD32) |
| Sequential Write Speed | Up to 11 GB/s (128 KiB, QD32) |
| Random Read IOPS | Up to 3,400,000 IOPS (4 KiB, QD512) |
| Random Write IOPS | Up to 800,000 IOPS (4 KiB, QD32) |
| Max Capacity (2.5-inch) | Up to 61.44 TB |
| Max Capacity (E3.S) | Up to 30.72 TB |
While these specifications are still preliminary and subject to change, the CM9 Series will be ideal for use cases requiring high-throughput, energy-efficient performance. KIOXIA will showcase its new CM9 Series at Dell Technologies World from May 19–22, 2025.
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