Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger, during the Q3 2024 earnings call, provided updates on the company's future CPU and GPU roadmap. He reaffirmed Intel's commitment to Arc GPUs and revealed that Panther Lake and Nova Lake CPUs will not follow Lunar Lake's on-package memory design.
Memory Design Shift
Gelsinger explained that while Lunar Lake's on-package LPDDR5X memory worked for that specific product, it's not a sustainable strategy for high-volume products like mainstream PCs. Panther Lake, Nova Lake, and their successors will revert to a more traditional design with off-package memory. This will allow for greater flexibility and scalability in memory configurations.
"That's at a volume product and a volume industry like the PC industry, you don't want to have volume memory going through that channel...So it really is, for us, a one-off with Lunar Lake."
- Pat Gelsinger
Focus on Integrated Graphics
Gelsinger also indicated a shift towards integrated graphics, suggesting that the need for discrete GPUs might decrease in the future. However, he reaffirmed Intel's commitment to its Arc discrete GPU lineup, with Ian Cutress confirming that development will continue.
"...in the client product area...how are we handling graphics and how that is increasingly becoming large integrated graphics capabilities. So, less need for discrete graphics in the market going forward."
- Pat Gelsinger
Simplified Product Line
Intel acknowledged having too many Lunar Lake SKUs with similar specifications and plans to simplify future product lines with fewer SKUs for greater efficiency.
Intel's next-generation Arc "Battlemage" GPUs, based on the Xe2 architecture, are still expected, although the launch may be delayed until early 2025.
