Intel Unveils Panther Lake AI Laptop Chips at CES 2025, Marking Major 18A Manufacturing Milestone

Intel has officially launched Panther Lake, its next-generation AI chip for laptops, at the CES 2025 trade show in Las Vegas, signaling a critical step in the company’s turnaround strategy and its push to regain market share in the highly competitive PC processor market. The launch is especially significant as Panther Lake is Intel’s first high-volume product manufactured using its advanced 18A process technology, a next-generation manufacturing node designed to restore Intel’s leadership in chip fabrication.

During the event, Jim Johnson, Intel’s senior vice president and general manager of its PC group, shared technical insights into the first Panther Lake lineup, branded as Intel Core Ultra Series 3. These processors introduce a new transistor architecture and an innovative power delivery method made possible by the 18A manufacturing process. According to Intel, these design advancements translate into up to 60% better performance compared to the prior-generation Lunar Lake Series 2 chips, many of which were produced by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC).

Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan emphasized that the company has delivered on its promise to ship products built on the 18A process in 2025, positioning Panther Lake as a cornerstone of Intel’s long-term manufacturing and AI strategy. The stakes are high, as Intel aims to reclaim ground lost to rival Advanced Micro Devices in recent years.

One notable architectural change in Panther Lake is the use of a separate graphics chiplet, a modular mini-chip combined with other chiplets to form a complete processor. This approach improves scalability and performance efficiency, particularly for AI workloads and graphics-intensive applications. Intel also confirmed plans to release a handheld gaming platform based on Panther Lake designs later this year, targeting the fast-growing handheld PC gaming market.

Despite earlier reports of yield challenges in Panther Lake production, Intel executives say manufacturing yields are improving steadily. Meanwhile, competition is intensifying, with AMD and Nvidia also unveiling new AI-focused chips at CES, underscoring the accelerating race to dominate AI computing across PCs, data centers, and gaming devices.