DirectX 12 preview adds tools to reduce ray-tracing update costs

Technology · First reported 31 Oct, 17:45 · Updated 17:58

Microsoft’s DirectX 12 Agility SDK 1.722 preview adds Clustered Geometry and Partitioned TLAS to update ray-tracing data more selectively. In Microsoft’s Radeon RX 9070 test, Clustered Geometry cut acceleration-structure memory by 89.7%, but Microsoft cautions that games should not expect gains of that scale. The features are in preview, and no retail release date has been announced.

Microsoft’s Agility SDK 1.722 preview introduces Clustered Geometry and Partitioned TLAS, which reuse geometry data and focus updates on changed scene regions.
In a Microsoft test on an AMD Radeon RX 9070, Clustered Geometry raised frame rate from 1.2 to 79 FPS and reduced acceleration-structure memory from 7,519 MiB to 774 MiB.
The features remain in preview, require developer tools and a supporting driver, and have no announced retail release date. Microsoft warns that games may not achieve the test’s gains.

Summary written by Lux AI from 2 articles

Key facts

Preview SDK: Agility SDK 1.722 for DirectX 12; released October 28, 2026.
RX 9070 sample frame rate: 1.2 FPS to 79 FPS with Clustered Geometry.
Acceleration-structure memory: 7,519 MiB to 774 MiB in the sample, a reduction of 89.7%.
PTLAS sample update time: Top-level update fell from 2.88 ms to 0.79 ms per frame; ray traversal became slightly slower.
Retail release: No retail release date has been announced.