FICO announced the launch of Xpress 9.8 on January 7 2026, adding NVIDIA CUDA‑X libraries to its optimization suite and making the hybrid‑gradient algorithm GPU‑accelerated for the first time. The new feature is a beta release that requires an NVIDIA GPU with Compute Capability 7.5 or higher.
The hybrid‑gradient algorithm can now deliver up to 50× speedups on large, dense optimization problems compared with the CPU‑only version in FICO Xpress 9.7. In addition, the mixed‑integer programming engine is 14% faster overall, and the global solver is 68% faster on large models, with a 5.3× improvement for problems that take at least 100 seconds to solve on the CPU baseline.
FICO’s product strategy positions Xpress 9.8 as a key enabler for its cloud‑native, SaaS‑focused platform. The company targets finance, supply‑chain, and logistics customers who routinely run high‑volume, data‑intensive models, and the GPU acceleration is expected to accelerate adoption among these high‑volume users by reducing run times from hours to minutes.
Management highlighted the launch as a “critical step” in delivering faster, real‑time analytics. Bill Waid, Chief Product and Technology Officer, said the GPU‑accelerated hybrid gradient “unlocks new possibilities for data‑driven decision‑making” and that the performance gains will help FICO compete against other enterprise‑software providers that rely solely on CPU processing.
Analysts at Autonomous Research and HSBC have recently adjusted their price targets for Fair Isaac Corporation, reflecting broader market confidence in the company’s cloud strategy, though the adjustments are not directly tied to the Xpress 9.8 release. The announcement underscores FICO’s commitment to innovation and positions it to capture a larger share of the growing optimization‑as‑a‑service market.
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