ASUS demos RTX 5090 with 16-pin connector running on a 48V system at Computex, GPU can push 1000W through a single cable

ASUS is taking a page from EV vehicle designers and testing a higher operating voltage with the 12V-2x6 power connector. ASUS demoed a modified RTX 5090 at Computex 2026 featuring a 12V-2x6 power connector running at 48 volts with a 1200-watt power limit.

Images from ComputerBase show the modified GPU running 3DMark while consuming over 1000 watts of power. The GPU is able to do this thanks to the higher-voltage architecture, allowing the RTX 5090's 16-pin power cable to operate at significant wattages without overheating. ASUS also had to modify the power supply to run at 48V, noting (in a press release) that it has developed a unit that can adapt between 12V and 48V automatically when the PSU detects a compatible (48V) GPU.

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In scientific terms, higher voltages translate into lower amperage. ComputerBase did the math, noting that at 48 volts, the 12V-2x6 power connector's individual wires only need to operate at 3.5 amps to achieve a blisteringly high 1000 watts of power delivery. By contrast, at 12V (the power connector's official operating voltage), each wire needs over 12 amps to achieve just 600W of power delivery.

Despite running a prototype of its 48V architecture on enthusiast-grade hardware, ASUS claims its 48V system is geared towards the "growing power demands of AI-era GPUs". If this is true, we will likely see this 48V architecture launch in the AI space first, with enthusiast hardware support coming later (if at all).

ASUS' new 48V architecture begs the question of why nobody has introduced higher voltages to supplementary GPU power connectors such as the 16-pin that is in use today. The main problem is that 12V is a mainstream standard that is adopted by the entire computing industry, and introducing higher voltage components to the PC/server ecosystem requires additional complexity.