Intel Unveils Panther Lake CPUs at Computex 2025: A Leap in Performance and Efficiency

Intel demos running Panther Lake systems, touts performance and power efficiency improvements

Intel demoed working Panther Lake Core Ultra 300 silicon for laptops, its first chips based on its crucial 18A process node, here at Computex 2025 in Taipei, Taiwan. Unlike the first public demoes at CES 2025 that merely showed the chips powered on, Intel put Panther Lake its paces in real-time rendering and AI applications, showing that the silicon is healthy and on-track for retail availability in early 2026. Intel also shared more information about its performance and power consumtpion expectations for the new chips. As you can see in the image above, Intel also had a Panther Lake chip on display, enabling us to see how the CPU, GPU, I/O tile, and SoC tile are arranged on the package. These chips are thought to come with Cougar Cove P-cores and Darkmont E-cores (you can see the unconfirmed leaked specifications of some of the chip models here). Intel says the Panther Lake chips blend the power efficiency of Lunar Lake with the performance of Arrow Lake-H, noting that while the chips will be in production in the second half of 2025, presumably launched at CES, full retail availability will not come until early 2026. Intel did tease that the chips will come with the next-gen integrated graphics with XMX graphics, but aside from saying the iGPU performance will be closer to Lunar Lake than Arrow Lake, the company didn't elaborate. These iGPUs are thought to be based on the Xe3 architecture. Intel ran its Panther Lake benchmarks on two Reference Validation Platforms (RVP) that you can see in the above album. These platforms are used to validate the design and emulate real-world conditions. Both RVPs were equipped with a heatsink and fan, so they were presumably operating without thermal constraints. Intel demoed one system running the newly-resurrected Clippy as a large language model to demonstrate that the chips are running AI workloads. The presenter used the system to write game code in Python code. Intel didn't share performance metrics from the benchmark. Intel also demoed a system running Da Vinci to edit and manipulate video using local AI processing to process the video, enabling fast manipulation of the video clip, such as changing backgrounds, clothing colors, and adding flying text to the clip. Intel also displayed a running developer kit that 300+ developers with ISVs are using to enable software support for the coming chips. Intel demoed the system being used for image editing with auto-coloring and upscaling features, powered, of course, by AI. As you can see in the album, the developer system is quite compact. Intel also had a host of laptops on display from its OEM partners. Intel's Panther Lake appears to be on track for its launch schedule, which bodes well for the company's immensely important 18A process node. Intel teased that the next steps are to release concrete speeds and feeds along with more information about the various chip models. We expect those to come trickling our over the next several months.

Intel demos Panther Lake chips, promises Arrow Lake performance with Lunar Lake efficiency

The big picture: Intel unveiled its next-generation Core Ultra 300 "Panther Lake" laptop processors on the opening day of Computex 2025. Built on the company's 18A process node, the chips use a five-tile design that includes Cougar Cove performance cores, Darkmont and Skymont efficient cores, and an Xe3 Celestial integrated GPU. Intel did not share performance benchmarks for the new chips but claimed they will deliver Arrow Lake-level performance with Lunar Lake-level efficiency. The company also confirmed that the processors will include next-gen XMX integrated graphics matching the performance of Lunar Lake's GPU. The exhibition included a Panther Lake laptop running DaVinci Resolve, showcasing on-device AI video processing. The laptop processor had 16 cores, though Intel withheld detailed specifications. Online speculation suggests a configuration of four performance cores, eight efficient cores, and four low-power efficient cores. The demo CPU featured a 2.0GHz base clock, 3.0GHz boost clock, 1.6MB of L1 cache, 24MB of L2 cache, and 18MB of L3 cache. Both the laptop and processor were engineering samples, with retail units expected to enter production in the second half of 2025 ahead of an early 2026 OEM launch. Another showcase at the event featured Microsoft's new AI-powered Clippy assistant, highlighting Panther Lake's AI processing capabilities. In the presentation, an Intel representative used Clippy to generate game code in Python. However, Intel did not provide benchmark data to illustrate the chip's performance. The Panther Lake chips at the event ran on Reference Validation Platforms - Intel's term for custom boards used to validate new processor microarchitectures. The company also displayed a development kit similar to the one shown alongside Lunar Lake last year. Previous leaks suggested that Panther Lake would include at least four SKUs. The flagship model features four P-cores, eight E-cores, four LP-E cores, and 12 Xe3 integrated GPU cores. It has a 45W PL1 rating and an 80W PL2 ceiling. The entry-level chip keeps four performance and four low-power efficiency cores but drops the standard efficiency cores, with a 15W PL1 and 54W PL2 rating.

Intel demos Panther Lake CPUs at Computex 2025 -- here's everything to know

The computing conference Computex 2025 is showcasing the future of PCs in Taipei this week with massive announcements from Nvidia, AMD and more. Intel is among them, and one of the bigger reveals from Team Blue this week was live demos of the upcoming Panther Lake Core Ultra 300 CPUs for laptops. Our colleagues at Tom's Hardware got to put some eyeballs on the Panther Lake-powered systems while at Computex, and their Intel demos sound promising. According to them, Intel showcased real-time tests of a Panther Lake CPU as it rendered or powered AI applications. They showed that the "silicon is healthy and on-track for retail availability in early 2026." The processors were using Cougar Cove P-cores (performance cores) and Darkmont E-cores (efficiency cores) which are being built on Intel's 18A node process, which should deliver better performance than earlier editions. The new laptop CPUs were described as blend of Intel's power-efficient Lunar Lake chips and the Arrow Lake-H performance CPUs. That sounds like it could be good news for future handheld gaming PCs like the MSI Claw 8 AI+, though we expect to see Panther Lake primarily in laptops. Intel has also previously teased a "next-gen built-in iGPU" which could also be a major performance booster, but it has not elaborated on that teaser at Computex so far. Intel has faced severe challenges in the last couple of years, so Panther Lake needs to be a quality chip to right the boat for the struggling chip maker. Especially as companies like AMD are impressing with its Ryzen Z2 Extreme processors, which we saw in a MSI Claw A8 at Computex. That said, right now Intel has the advantage in battery life efficiency with its Lunar Lake chips and it appears that Panther Lake is on track to keep that lead while providing better performance.

Big cat sighting: Intel shows off Panther Lake at Computex

Computex 2025 was a rather quiet show this year, and no company was quite as quiet as Intel. We didn't get a keynote or a press conference from Team Blue, but that doesn't mean the company was entirely silent. In small press demos, Intel showcased its new flagship Arc Pro B50 and B60 GPUs and walked folks through the recent improvements to the Arrow Lake lineup. For the company's upcoming 18A flagship CPU, Panther Lake did appear in two demos on test rigs. While we still haven't had a deep dive into Panther Lake, here's what we know so far. Intel's Panther Lake chipset is expected to enter production this fall with a full consumer-ready launch beginning in early 2026. Panther Lake is a chipset built for mobile platforms and will likely hit the shelves as the Intel Core Ultra 300 series with the classic H and U suffixes. Panther Lake is the first commercial chip to be made with Intel's 18A (1.8nm) foundry process, and will thus be the company's first chipset made on a two-nanometer-class process node. Intel's Core Ultra 200V Lunar Lake series was a "one-off" in that the suffix won't be reused in the 300 series. But that doesn't mean the chipset is entirely done. Intel sees Panther Lake as a "best of both worlds" solution, with the power efficiency of Lunar Lake and the performance of Arrow Lake H. Intel is also updating its Arc integrated graphics platform to fit on the Panther Lake SoC (system-on-a-chip), offering enhanced 3D rendering and AI performance. Intel expects Panther Lake chipsets to power consumer laptops, gaming hardware (including potential gaming handhelds), and commercial laptops, from standard business productivity devices to workstations. As the Panther Lake chipset is still not in full production, Intel was showcasing the new silicon in reference validation platforms and prototype dev kits used in Intel's internal test labs. Intel's demo team tasked Panther Lake with automatic AI masking in DaVinci Resolve, and the color changes and text implementation were done near instantaneously. Intel also demonstrated Panther Lake's LLM power with Qwen 2.5, tasking the AI with creating a Python program. Panther Lake's AI accelerators kicked back an instant token, essentially doing the work of weeks (or months) in a heartbeat. Intel's final Panther Lake demo was again an AI task, this time using Topaz Labs' photo upscaling to increase the pixel count and balance the colors of a photo simultaneously. But don't just take my word for it. Intel published a walkthrough of all three Panther Lake demos to YouTube. Since Intel makes chips and not end-user devices, the performance seen in the demos may not be entirely indicative of what we get from laptop manufacturers. But the demos are incredibly compelling, even if performance is likely to vary across different slices of the chipset and different OEM configurations. Panther Lake is on track for production in the second half of this year, with a full consumer launch expected in early 2026. If any early Panther Lake systems do end up hitting the market, I wouldn't expect to see them until at least October. Lunar Lake launched in early September last year, but Arrow Lake H didn't come in until February, so Panther Lake is likely to come somewhere between those two timeframes. We'll likely get more details on Panther Lake over the summer, if not at a full press conference, as part of an Intel Tech Tour. The initial launch could come any time between September and December 2025, with broader availability coming between January and March.

Computex 2025: Intel Shows Panther Lake Core Ultra 300: 18A Process Node For Mobile

Intel's latest Panther Lake Core Ultra 300 chip got a real test at Computex 2025 in Taipei. Instead of just lighting up the board like at CES 2025, the prototype actually ran 3D rendering and on-device AI routines. That hands-on demo showed the silicon is functioning as expected and heading toward final production. Right now, Intel has plans to start rolling out these chips into laptops in the second half of 2025, with most machines hitting store shelves in early 2026. From the see-through demo rig, you could spot four main parts packed into the package. There's the compute block with a mix of high-end Cougar Cove P-cores and energy-smart Darkmont E-cores. Then you've got the GPU section, which uses the new Xe3 architecture and packs XMX units for AI work. On a separate tile, Intel put all the I/O lanes -- think USB, PCIe, and memory interfaces. Finally, there's a system-on-chip tile that runs the background controllers and power management. Splitting the design into tiles makes it easier to boost yields and manage heat, since each part can be tested separately before assembly. Intel is showcasing its upcoming Panther Lake processors at Computex 2025, giving us an exciting glimpse into the future of computing. These next-gen processors use Intel's own advanced 18A manufacturing process and blend the best features of Lunar Lake's power efficiency with Arrow Lake-H's high-performance capabilities. Production is set to begin in the second half of 2025, with an official market release planned for early 2026. On the performance side, Intel's aiming to blend the best bits of Lunar Lake's efficiency with Arrow Lake-H's speed. They're predicting that single-threaded benchmarks should meet or surpass what Arrow Lake mobile chips do today, but at lower power levels. Panther Lake processors on display at Computex 2025 consist of five different chip tiles. These include upgraded Cougar Cove performance cores (P-Cores) and Darkmont efficiency cores (E-Cores). Additionally, the processors feature Intel's brand-new Xe3 "Celestial" graphics core and an NPU unit with double the AI performance compared to previous generations. This impressive combination means Panther Lake will significantly outperform both Lunar Lake and Arrow Lake processors. The early engineering sample shown at the event features 16 cores but doesn't currently support Hyper-Threading (HT). Details regarding the exact distribution between performance, efficiency, and low-power efficiency cores (P/E/LPE) are still unclear. The base clock speed on this sample is 2 GHz, while its highest current boost speed reaches just 3 GHz. However, Intel anticipates the final version will achieve speeds exceeding 5 GHz. AI gurus will appreciate the XMX units, which should speed up machine-learning inference, and the chip's memory system has been tuned for faster data access. Plus, there's a new voltage-frequency control system that tweaks power use in real time, cutting down idle draw and keeping average wattage in check. All in all, Intel expects the Panther Lake mobile lineup to land in OEM laptops at CES 2026, with consumer availability following soon after. Source and image credit: tomshardware