Kioxia has introduced its NX1 Series of E1.S form factor solid-state drives, aimed at data center and AI server environments that rely on dense GPU configurations. These PCIe 5.0 NVMe drives represent the company’s follow-on to the earlier XD Series and mark its first product line to support direct liquid cooling through cold-plate designs in the 9.5 mm thickness option. The 15 mm versions remain air-cooled only. Capacities range from 1.92 TB to 15.36 TB at one drive write per day, positioning them for read-intensive workloads common in hyperscale and AI inference clusters.
Performance gains over the previous generation are stated as up to 38 percent higher sequential write speeds and 20 percent higher random write speeds, though actual results will depend on the host system, drivers, and workload patterns. The drives use Kioxia’s eighth-generation BiCS FLASH TLC memory with a CMOS-bonded-to-array structure and an in-house controller. They comply with NVMe 2.0, the Open Compute Project Datacenter NVMe SSD 2.6 specification, and support Flexible Data Placement. An optional self-encrypting model meeting most TCG Opal requirements is available in selected markets.
The move toward liquid-cooled storage reflects a broader shift in high-density AI infrastructure. Accelerator-heavy servers already generate heat loads that challenge traditional air cooling, and the E1.S form factor has gained traction because it packs more capacity into a chassis while leaving room for improved thermal paths. Direct liquid cooling on the drive itself is still uncommon; most operators cool the system level rather than individual SSDs. Whether the NX1’s cold-plate compatibility delivers measurable gains in power efficiency or reliability will depend on how thoroughly data center operators redesign their cooling loops and cold-plate interfaces. Early sampling is limited to selected hyperscale customers, with a public demonstration planned for the Future of Memory and Storage event in early August.
In the wider market for data center NVMe SSDs, successive generations of PCIe interfaces and denser NAND have steadily raised sequential and random throughput while the industry has debated the right balance between capacity, endurance, and thermal management. The NX1 Series continues that trajectory rather than breaking new ground. Its value will be judged by how well the combination of higher write performance, E1.S density, and optional liquid cooling integrates into existing hyperscale fleets without requiring costly infrastructure overhauls. Operators evaluating these drives will need to weigh the stated performance deltas against real-world power draw, latency consistency under mixed AI workloads, and the practical maturity of direct liquid cooling at the SSD level.
