The SSD isn't a surprise and I'll say I called it. "I know it’s impossible, but can we have an SSD?" said every dev ever because it changes the fundamental way you can access data. Interestingly though, it sounds like Sony have gone very specialist which I think smart. I expect it to be smaller if it's that much faster as they claim. I think faster SSD and more medium level RAM is probably the better balance for game worlds (not visuals) than slower storage, faster RAM.
As for hardware RT support, we need to wait and see how exactly and what sort of performance it's getting. Very nice to hear that it's being included for flexibility though, not just graphics. And it should tie in with the 3D audio too, which is very exciting. My surround headphones definitely give me an edge in Apex Legends.