At Intel’s last quarterly conference I had to link its success in mastering new lithographic standards to the dynamics of financial indicators, and explain their mutual dependence. Lunar Lake processors are being launched ahead of schedule, but they will be manufactured almost entirely at TSMC facilities, and only with the transition to Intel 18A technology will the company regain the ability to influence the cost of its processors more.
Image source: Intel
Lunar Lake processors will be shipped in bulk quantities this quarter, as they are scheduled to be announced on September 3. These chips will be designed for use in thin and light notebooks. The latter will meet the requirements for Copilot+ PC, which will allow systems of this family to accelerate the work of artificial intelligence using the hardware resources of the central processors.
“Lunar Lake will be the best AI processor on the shelves come fall. Microsoft has approved it for use in more than 80 Copilot+ PC models across more than 20 brands that will ship this quarter. Lunar Lake will soon be joined by Arrow Lake processors, which will bring AI to the desktop category next quarter,” Intel CEO Patrick Gelsinger said at the earnings call.
Since all three dies that make up Lunar Lake processors will be manufactured by TSMC, and Intel itself will only package and test them, it will not have much leverage over the cost of production during the release of processors of this family, as the company representatives announced at the quarterly event. “While this product is great, it was originally targeted at a narrow market niche, using mainly silicon wafers processed on the side, and therefore was not optimized from a cost perspective,” explained Intel CFO Davis Zinsner.
However, the event was not without good news, traditionally related to the not very distant, but still future. According to the management, Intel already has working samples of client Panther Lake processors and server Clearwater Forest, which it will manufacture independently using Intel 18A technology. The company intends to introduce client Panther Lake in the second half of next year. As Gelsinger explained, the transition to Intel 18A process technology will allow the company to begin returning the processed crystals to its conveyor for greater control over cost. According to the head of Intel, this “will significantly increase the overall profitability of the business.”
For the data center segment, Intel is preparing Clearwater Forest processors, which will hit the market after Panther Lake, but will also be manufactured using Intel 18A technology at the company’s own facilities. According to the head of Intel, the first samples of Clearwater Forest demonstrate impressive characteristics. The Foveros Direct Packaging packaging technology used in their production will provide significant cost savings, including operating costs, starting next year.
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