Microsoft

Microsoft’s gaming CEO has repeatedly hinted that it could create its own Steam Deck-style Xbox device, and in a new interview with Bloomberg, the exec said that the “expectation is that we would do something” in the category.

Microsoft is working on prototypes and considering what it might do, Spencer confirmed, and he’s asked his hardware team to analyse the market and “develop its vision based on what it learns”. Any device is a few years out, he said.

In the near term, Xbox will focus on making its app work better on existing portable devices, and partnering with hardware manufacturers to make sure their products sync, he added.

“Longer term, I love us building devices,” Spencer said. “And I think our team could do some real innovative work, but we want to be informed by learning and what’s happening now.”