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Shuttle Expanding AI-Accelerated XPC Nano Series With Intel-Based Model

Following the successful launch of our AMD-powered AI-PC NA10H7, Shuttle is proud to announce the release of two new additions to our compact XPC nano family: NT10H5 and NT10H9. Designed in the same ultra-compact 1-liter chassis, both newcomers offer powerful AI-acceleration and multitasking capabilities - now based on Intel's cutting-edge Core Ultra processors.

Compact Yet Powerful: The New NT10H Series
The NT10H5 and NT10H9 mini-PCs carry the same DNA as the NA10H7, delivering high-performance computing in a nano-sized footprint (132 x 143 x 55 mm). They are equipped with Intel Core Ultra 5-125H and Intel Core Ultra 9-185H processors respectively, featuring integrated Intel Arc graphics and the dedicated Intel AI Boost NPU. These systems reach up to 34 TOPS of AI performance, making them ideal for machine learning, content creation, and real-time data processing in modern business or creative environments.

G.SKILL Announces World's First Large Capacity 128GB (64GBx2) DDR5 Overclocked Memory Kit at DDR5-8000

G.SKILL International Enterprise Co., Ltd., the world's leading brand of performance overclock memory and PC components, is thrilled to announce a new high-speed memory overclock DDR5 specification with an ultra-high kit capacity - DDR5-8000 CL44 with 128 GB (64 GB x2) kit capacity. This is the world's first DDR5 memory kit with 64 GB high-capacity modules to reach the extreme overclock level of DDR5-8000, setting a new milestone for high-performance computing, content creation, AI applications, and advanced workstation workloads.

New Era of Overclocking High-Capacity DDR5 64 GB Modules
Engineered for high-capacity overclocked performance, the DDR5-8000 128 GB (64 GB x2) combines ultra-high memory speed with massive memory kit capacity, surpassing the previous module capacity maximum at 48 GB per module. At last, power users and content creators who seek overclock performance memory for capacity-hungry applications will have the ideal DDR5 memory solution. Refer to the validation screenshot below to see DDR5-8000 CL44-58-58 128 GB (64 GB x2) tested on the ASUS ROG CROSSHAIR X870E APEX motherboard with the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X desktop processor.

Eight-Core CPUs Become the Most Popular Choice of PC Users, CPU-Z Stats Show

CPU-Z's Q1 2025 validation data indicates a new trend in CPU core count preferences among PC users. Eight-core processors now account for 24.7% of all validations, a significant increase of 32.6% compared to previous data. In contrast, six-core processors have declined to 22.5% of validations, down by 6.9%. The higher core count of eight-core CPUs aligns with the increasing demand for multithreaded performance in various computing environments, from professional workstations to high-end gaming systems. Market share figures also reveal adjustments in consumer preferences regarding CPU manufacturers. Intel retains a majority of presence with 56.3% of the market. However, AMD's share has risen notably at 43.7%, representing a 16.6% increase from the previous year.

The shift in market shares suggests that users are increasingly drawn to AMD's offerings, which include competitive eight-core processors. A key contributor to the trend toward eight-core CPUs is the rising popularity of specific models. The Ryzen 7 9800X3D, for example, has significantly impacted this new statistic, becoming the most popular CPU according to the CPU-Z validations. This indicates that users are interested in eight-core offerings with 3D V-Cache technology for increased gaming performance. The shift away from six-core configurations, which now represent a smaller portion of the validation data, shows that eight cores are now a sweet spot for many gamers. For multitasking and gaming, it seems like a perfect choice.

Intel and TSMC in Foundry Joint Venture Talks

Intel and TSMC are reportedly locked in talks to form a semiconductor foundry joint-venture (JV). This sensational piece of news comes from Reuters, which says that the two companies have reached a preliminary agreement to form the JV. Apparently, the move saves TSMC from building any hard infrastructure on U.S. soil, and instead use Intel's semiconductor foundry facilities. This would hence bring TSMC's semiconductor manufacturing IP and workforce to the U.S., however it remains to be seen if the very latest foundry technology would be handed over to the JV. TSMC would hold a 20% stake in the venture, and Intel the rest. Investors of Intel and TSMC reacted very differently to the news, with the TSMC stock falling 6% and Intel gaining 5%. Reuters also reports that it was the Trump Administration that negotiated this joint-venture between TSMC and Intel in a bid to "revitalize Intel."

Forget Reboots, Live Patches are Coming to Windows 11 Enterprise Clients

Microsoft is introducing live patch updates for Windows 11 Enterprise, version 24H2, that allow critical security fixes to be applied without interrupting users. These updates, known as hotpatches, are available for x64 devices running on AMD or Intel CPUs. Hotpatch updates are designed to install quickly and take effect immediately. Unlike standard monthly security updates that require a system restart, hotpatch updates provide instant protection against vulnerabilities while allowing users to continue working. This new process can reduce the number of restarts from twelve per year to just four. The update schedule follows a quarterly cycle. In January, April, July, and October, devices install a complete security update with new features and fixes that do require a restart. In the two months that follow each of these baseline updates, devices receive hotpatch updates that only include security fixes and do not need a reboot. This approach ensures that essential protections are applied quickly without impacting daily work.

To use hotpatch updates, organizations need a Microsoft subscription that includes Windows 11 Enterprise (or Windows 365 Enterprise) and devices running build 26100.2033 or later. These devices must also be managed using Microsoft Intune, where IT administrators can set up a hotpatch-enabled quality update policy. The Intune admin center automatically detects eligible devices and manages the update process. Hotpatch updates are currently available on Intel and AMD-powered devices. For Arm64 devices, hotpatch updates are still in public preview and require an extra configuration step: disabling CHPE support via a registry key or the upcoming DisableCHPE CSP. This update system represents a more efficient way to secure Windows client devices. By minimizing the need for restarts and delivering updates in a predictable, quarterly cycle, Microsoft aims to help organizations protect their systems with minimal disruption. We expect these live patches to trickle down to more Windows 11 versions, like Home and Pro editions.

Intel Arc GPU Graphics Drivers 101.6732 Beta Released

Intel today released the latest version of its Arc GPU Graphics Drivers. Version 101.6732 Beta comes with optimization for The Last of Us Part II Remastered. It also comes with a performance enhancement for Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, with up to 15% performance increases to be had with "balanced" settings at 1080p. Among the issues fixed with this release are lower than expected performance with Returnal in Arc A-series and B-series discrete GPUs; a game corruption seen with FragPunk on Core Ultra Series 2 integrated graphics; a display corruption seen with Plants vs. Zombies GOTY Edition in windowed mode; and intermittent game crashes seen with Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 Campaign Remastered.

DOWNLOAD: Intel Arc GPU Graphics Drivers 101.6732 Beta

Intel's 18A Node Process Has Entered "Risk Production" - Foundry's Output Scaling Up

Intel's Vision 2025 conference ended yesterday—since then, media outlets have spent time poring over a multitude of announcements made during the two-day Las Vegas, Nevada event. Notably, Team Blue leadership confirmed that their Core Ultra 300 "Panther Lake" processor series is built to scale (on) 18A, and is on track for production later this year." Prominently-displayed presentation material indicated a roadmapped 2026 launch of "Panther Lake" client chips. The success of this next-gen mobile processor family is intertwined with Intel's Foundry service making marked progress. As summarized by the company's social media account, production teams are celebrating another milestone: "Intel 18A has entered risk production. This final stage is about stress-testing volume manufacturing before scaling up to high volume in the second half of 2025."

Under Pat Gelsinger's command, Team Blue set off on a "five nodes in four years" (5N4Y) adventure around mid-2021. This plan is set to conclude with the finalization of 18A, at some point this year, under a newly refreshed regime—with Lip-Bu Tan recently established as CEO. During an on-stage Intel Vision 2025 session, Kevin O'Buckley—Senior VP of Foundry Services—explained the meaning of: "risk production, while it sounds scary, is actually an industry standard terminology, and the importance of risk production is we've gotten the technology to a point where we're freezing it...Our customers have validated that; 'Yep, 18A is good enough for my product.' And we have to now do the 'risk' part, which is to scale it from making hundreds of units per day to thousands, tens of thousands, and then hundreds of thousands. So risk production..is scaling our manufacturing up and ensuring that we can meet not just the capabilities of the technology, but the capabilities at scale." By original "5N4Y" decree, top brass demanded that process nodes be (fully) available for production, rather than be stuck in a (not quite there) final high volume manufacturing (HVM) phase.

Intel Xeon Remains Only Server CPU on MLPerf

Today, MLCommons released its latest MLPerf Inference v5.0 benchmarks, showcasing Intel Xeon 6 with Performance-cores (P-cores) across six key benchmarks. The results reveal a remarkable 1.9x boost in AI performance over the previous generation of processors, affirming Xeon 6 as a top solution for modern AI systems.

"The latest MLPerf results demonstrate Intel Xeon 6 as the ideal CPU for AI workloads, offering a perfect balance of performance and energy efficiency. Intel Xeon remains the leading CPU for AI systems, with consistent gen-over-gen performance improvements across a variety of AI benchmarks." - Karin Eibschitz Segal, Intel corporate vice president and interim general manager of the Data Center and AI Group

MLCommons Releases New MLPerf Inference v5.0 Benchmark Results

Today, MLCommons announced new results for its industry-standard MLPerf Inference v5.0 benchmark suite, which delivers machine learning (ML) system performance benchmarking in an architecture-neutral, representative, and reproducible manner. The results highlight that the AI community is focusing much of its attention and efforts on generative AI scenarios, and that the combination of recent hardware and software advances optimized for generative AI have led to dramatic performance improvements over the past year.

The MLPerf Inference benchmark suite, which encompasses both datacenter and edge systems, is designed to measure how quickly systems can run AI and ML models across a variety of workloads. The open-source and peer-reviewed benchmark suite creates a level playing field for competition that drives innovation, performance, and energy efficiency for the entire industry. It also provides critical technical information for customers who are procuring and tuning AI systems. This round of MLPerf Inference results also includes tests for four new benchmarks: Llama 3.1 405B, Llama 2 70B Interactive for low-latency applications, RGAT, and Automotive PointPainting for 3D object detection.

IBM & Intel Announce the Availability of Gaudi 3 AI Accelerators on IBM Cloud

Yesterday, at Intel Vision 2025, IBM announced the availability of Intel Gaudi 3 AI accelerators on IBM Cloud. This offering delivers Intel Gaudi 3 in a public cloud environment for production workloads. Through this collaboration, IBM Cloud aims to help clients more cost-effectively scale and deploy enterprise AI. Intel Gaudi 3 AI accelerators on IBM Cloud are currently available in Frankfurt (eu-de) and Washington, D.C. (us-east) IBM Cloud regions, with future availability for the Dallas (us-south) IBM Cloud region in Q2 2025.

IBM's AI in Action 2024 report found that 67% of surveyed leaders reported revenue increases of 25% or more due to including AI in business operations. Although AI is demonstrating promising revenue increases, enterprises are also balancing the costs associated with the infrastructure needed to drive performance. By leveraging Intel's Gaudi 3 on IBM Cloud, the two companies are aiming to help clients more cost effectively test, innovate and deploy generative AI solutions. "By bringing Intel Gaudi 3 AI accelerators to IBM Cloud, we're enabling businesses to help scale generative AI workloads with optimized performance for inferencing and fine-tuning. This collaboration underscores our shared commitment to making AI more accessible and cost-effective for enterprises worldwide," said Saurabh Kulkarni, Vice President, Datacenter AI Strategy and Product Management, Intel.

Microsoft Copilot+ Becomes More Useful on AMD and Intel PCs

When Microsoft first introduced the Copilot+ program alongside its renewed push for Windows-on-Arm laptops, the AI-powered assistant features were mostly limited to Snapdragon X-powered devices. In addition to the inclusion of these features on Intel and AMD systems, Microsoft is also announcing Voice Access, a new accessibility feature that will first launch on Qualcomm Snapdragon systems and make their way to Intel- and AMD-powered systems. These new updates come by way of the March 27 Preview update titled KB505365. However, there is still no mention of an AMD and Intel launch for the much maligned Recall feature that Microsoft was testing late last year and recalled due to privacy concerns.

According to the latest Windows Experience Blog post, users of AMD- and Intel-powered PCs will now be able to access features, like Live Captions, Cocreator, Restyle Image, and Image Creator more broadly across the line-up of Copilot+ PCs with Intel Core Ultra 200V and AMD Ryzen AI 300 CPUs. Live Captions is officially pitched as an accessibility feature, meanwhile Restyle Image and Image Creator are AI-powered image editing and generation features, and Cocreator lies somewhere in between as a text-to-image tool that is meant to augment drawing in Paint. Cocreator will be rolling out as of the announcement, and Restyle Image and Image Creator will be available in the Photos app on Intel and AMD systems. As for Voice Access, Microsoft claims that it will allow users to be more flexible with their language when using speech to navigate their PCs, as opposed to "learning complex steps, commands and syntax that voice access previously required" for voice navigation on PC. Voice Access will initially be limited to Snapdragon X PCs, but it will roll out to AMD and Intel Copilot+ PCs later this year.

MAINGEAR Unveils 2025 MG-1 Gaming PCs Featuring NVIDIA 50-Series GPUs, Latest AMD Ryzen, and Intel Core Ultra Series 2 CPUs

MAINGEAR, the leader in premium-quality, high-performance gaming PCs, today unveiled its new 2025 pre-configured MG-1 gaming systems, equipped with NVIDIA's cutting-edge GeForce RTX 50-Series GPUs and powered by the latest AMD Ryzen 9000 Series CPUs and Intel Core Ultra Series 2 processors. This exciting lineup offers gamers a significant leap in power, performance, and value, reinforcing MAINGEAR's commitment to redefining the gaming experience across all levels of play.

"2025 is bound to be the best year yet for PC gamers, and the introduction of our newest MG-1 systems continues to drive MAINGEAR's mission to deliver the ultimate gaming experience," said Wallace Santos, CEO of MAINGEAR. "With NVIDIA's RTX 50-Series GPUs, and the latest AMD Ryzen and Intel Core Ultra processors, we've got more options than ever before, ensuring the perfect fit for gamers of all skill levels and budgets."

Eurocom Launches MIL-4TD 810H Compliant Laptop With Intel Core Ultra 7 255H Processors

Eurocom launches the new BLITZ Ultra 2, a lightweight, robust, and fully customizable laptop designed for engineers, military and defense contractors, content creators, and all kinds of computer users who require lightweight professional-grade computing on the go. Combining the latest Intel Core Ultra 7 255H processors with military-tested MIL-STD 810H durability and a long-lasting 10hr battery, the BLITZ Ultra 2 is engineered for users who demand lightweight, performance, long battery life and mobility without compromise.

Powered by Intel Core Ultra 7 255H - Fast, Efficient, and Ready for Modern Workloads
At the heart of the BLITZ Ultra 2 is the latest Intel Core Ultra 7 255H processor, featuring 16 cores, 16 threads, and Intel Arc 140T integrated graphics, pushing up to 5.1 GHz for demanding tasks. Also available with the Intel Core Ultra 5 225H variant, this platform delivers exceptional single-core and multi-core performance for professionals working on code compilation, 3D modeling, virtual machines, and everyday productivity.

Intel's New CEO Commits to Launching "Panther Lake" in 2H 2025, "Nova Lake" Release On Track for 2026

In a letter addressed to stockholders, Intel's new CEO—Lip-Bu Tan—roadmapped the importance of a couple of major upcoming product launches. Starting off, Team Blue's new chief detailed a fresh approach, with the casting off of old strategies: "achieving the results I know Intel is capable of starts by refocusing on our customers. This has been priority number one since my first day on the job. I am listening carefully to their feedback so that we continue driving the changes needed to delight our customers and strengthen our competitive position. Plain and simple, the time for talk is over. We must turn our words into action and deliver on our commitments. I have been pleased to see the leadership team has already started driving the culture change needed to make this happen. As CEO, I will continue to drive this transformation so that we move faster, work smarter and make it easier for customers to win with Intel."

Tan's mentioning of Core Ultra "Panther Lake" processors arriving within the second half of this year aligns with prior official statements. Insiders posited that Panther Lake-H (PTL-H) mobile CPUs were delayed into 2026 due to issues with the Foundry's 18A process node, but an Intel executive dismissed these claims a few weeks ago. Interestingly, the firm's Chinese office outlined an "early 2026 volume launch" of "Panther Lake (18A)" chips during a mid-March AI PC press event. A presentation slide indicated that an Early Enablement Program (EEP) is expected to start in October; Team Blue's loose terminology likely classes the sending off of samples—to OEMs, for approval—as a "real" product launch.

Intel to Receive $1.9 Billion as SK Hynix Finalizes NAND Deal

Intel and SK Hynix have finalized an $8.85 billion transaction involving Intel's NAND flash memory operations, marking the conclusion of a two-phase deal initiated in 2020. In the first phase of the transaction, SK Hynix acquired Intel's SSD division along with a NAND production facility in Dalian, China, for $6.61 billion. The Dalian facility was later rebranded as Solidigm. Notably, this phase transferred only the physical assets and operational facilities, leaving behind critical intellectual property, research and development infrastructure, and specialized technical staff. The second phase, finalized with a payment of $1.9 billion this Tuesday, addressed these remaining components. With this payment, SK Hynix secured full rights to Intel's proprietary NAND technology, R&D resources, and the technical workforce dedicated to NAND operations.

During the transition period, Intel maintained control over these elements, which limited integration between Solidigm and Intel's NAND teams. This separation was designed to manage operational risks and gradually transfer capabilities. Completing this deal helps with a strategic restructuring of Intel's portfolio as it shifts focus toward high-growth areas such as AI chip development, foundry services, and next-generation semiconductor manufacturing. A $1.9 billion financial injection is perfect in time for Intel Foundry business, burning billions per year, to offset some of the losses. For SK Hynix, consolidating the complete range of Intel's NAND operations enhances its competitive position in the global NAND market, providing access to established technologies and key industry expertise. This finalization is part of a broader trend where companies divest from commoditized memory products to concentrate on more advanced semiconductor solutions like AI chips and other accelerators, which are enjoying higher margins and a better business outlook.

Intel Reportedly Abandoned Higher-end Arc Xe2 "Battlemage" dGPU Project Last Year

Intel GPU enthusiasts have been waiting patiently for news regarding higher-end models; ever since the launches of wallet-friendly Arc Xe2 "Battlemage" B580 and B570 graphics cards. As the cliché goes; recent silence has been deafening—we last heard about a speculative expanded lineup of B-series SKUs around late January. At the time, three mysterious "Battlemage" PCI identifiers turned up online; courtesy of Tomasz Gawroński's detective work. Opinions were split about the exact nature of these leaked "BMG" IDs; one camp envisioned Team Blue having professional variants of their existing B580 in the pipeline—presumably with generously specced pools of 24 GB VRAM onboard. A more optimistic group posited that Intel's Arc Xe2 desktop gaming family would welcome more potent "B750, B770," and (maybe) "B780" SKUs.

Yesterday, Tomasz Gawroński (aka GawroskiT) interacted with another notable source of inside track information: Jaykihn (jaykihn0). Plenty of Team Blue-related "scoops" have emerged via Jaykihn's social media channel; mostly predictions regarding upcoming desktop, mobile and enterprise CPUs. Their latest leak indicates Intel's alleged abandoning of a high-end/larger "BMG-G31" GPU die in 2024; within the third quarter of that year. Insiders have long insisted that the Arc Xe2 "Battlemage" project navigated choppy waters during development; hence the appearance of endless theories about the whole caboodle being called off. Jaykihn clarified that he believes that a "retail" launch of "BMG-G31" dGPUs will no longer take place. Many watchdogs will assume that a gap will be filled by forthcoming Arc Xe3 "Celestial" discrete GPUs. Jaykihn stated that they have no fresh insights into how that project is going.

Supermicro Ships Over 20 New Systems that Redefine Single-Socket Performance

Super Micro Computer, Inc., a Total IT Solution Provider for AI/ML, HPC, Cloud, Storage, and 5G/Edge, is announcing the availability of new single-socket servers capable of supporting applications that required dual-socket servers for a range of data center workloads. By leveraging a single-socket architecture, enterprises and data center operators can reduce initial acquisition costs, ongoing operational costs such as power and cooling, and reduce the physical footprint of server racks compared to previous generations of systems based on older processors.

"We are entering a new era of compute where energy-efficient and thermally optimized single-socket architectures are becoming a viable alternative to traditional dual-processor servers," said Charles Liang, president and CEO of Supermicro. "Our new single-socket servers support 100% more cores per system than previous generations and have been designed to maximize acceleration, networking, and storage flexibility. Supporting up to 500-watt TDP processors, these new systems can be configured to fulfill a wide range of workload requirements."

Intel Releases Arc GPU Graphics Driver 101.6653 Beta

Intel has released its latest version of the Arc GPU Graphics Driver, version 101.6653 Beta. The latest GPU graphics driver update brings Game On driver support for inZOI, KARMA: The Dark World, and The First Berserker: Khazan games, and improves performance Intel Arc B-series Graphics GPUs in Rise of Ronin game. According to Intel, you can expect up to 15 percent performance increase at 1080p resolution and up to 18 percent at 1440p resolution, both with Ultra Settings.

As it is the Beta released, Intel did not fix any previously known issues, so there is still an extensive list, including issues in Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0 and Call of Duty: Blackops 6 games, as well as some other applications like PugentBench, Topaz Labs Photo AI, MLPerf, Adobe Lightroom Classic, and others. You can check out the full release notes below.

DOWNLOAD: Intel Arc GPU Graphics Drivers 101.6653 Beta

Intel's Foundry Eyes NVIDIA and Broadcom as Clients for Future Growth

According to an investment bank UBS note, two industry titans—NVIDIA and Broadcom—are potential future clients that could significantly enhance Intel's Foundry business revenue. To revitalize Intel, newly appointed CEO Lip-Bu Tan reportedly aims to forge strategic alliances with two AI chip manufacturers. Tan, who assumed leadership earlier this month, is determined to rebuild the company's reputation by focusing on customer satisfaction and accelerating the development of its foundry business. UBS analyst Tim Arcuri suggests that while Broadcom might join the client roster, NVIDIA appears to be the more likely candidate. Rather than initially manufacturing NVIDIA's AI GPUs, Intel is expected to begin production with gaming GPUs. NVIDIA could even move to AI GPU production at Intel's fabs if satisfied.

Despite some early optimism, Intel's new CEO is now committed to addressing issues related to power consumption in Intel's manufacturing processes. UBS analyst Tim Arcuri noted that the firm is pushing hard to introduce a lower-power version of its 18A process, the so-called 18AP, which has reportedly struggled to meet energy requirements. Additionally, Intel is working to improve its advanced packaging techniques to rival Taiwan's TSMC CoWoS (S/L/R variants) technology, aiming to overcome packaging constraints that have slowed AI chip production. Analysts speculate that Intel might also become a secondary supplier to tech giant Apple. A promising partnership with Taiwan's United Microelectronics (UMC) could pave the way for Intel's chips to find their way into future Apple products. Whatever materializes, we are yet to see. Switching foundries from TSMC to Intel entirely is not possible for any of the aforementioned fabless designers, so it will likely be dual-sourcing at first, with some non-flagship SKUs getting the full port to Intel 18A.

MagStor Unveils the World's First Thunderbolt 5 LTO Drive, Anticipates Late 2025 Launch

MagStor, an industry leader in advanced data storage solutions, proudly announces the launch of the world's first Thunderbolt 5 LTO drive, marking a monumental step forward in data storage technology. This groundbreaking innovation continues MagStor's tradition of trailblazing advancements, following its historic introduction of the patented world's first Thunderbolt 3 LTO drive. Designed with cutting-edge Thunderbolt 5 technology, the new LTO drive offers unprecedented speed, reliability, and compatibility for professional data backup and archival needs.

"At MagStor, we are committed to pushing the boundaries of what's possible in data storage," said Tim Gerhard, VP of Product at MagStor. "After revolutionizing the market with the first-ever Thunderbolt 3 LTO drive, we're excited to raise the bar again with Thunderbolt 5, ensuring our customers have access to the most powerful and flexible storage solutions available."

Intel "Q46W" Engineering Sample Seems to be "Meteor Lake-S" Desktop CPU minus Hyper-Threading

The status of Intel "Meteor Lake-S" (MTL-S) desktop processors was the subject of much speculation throughout 2023—by September of that year, Team Blue leadership projected an upcoming launch in 2024. Technically, Meteor Lake was deployed to "sort-of desktops" platforms—albeit in mini-PCs that utilized Core Ultra mobile chips. Industry moles insisted that Intel was still actively engaged in production of MTL-S samples in late 2023. According to a recent ITHome report, those insider tales turned out to be legitimate. On Monday (March 24), the online publication revealed the existence of a mysterious "Q46W" engineering sample—courtesy of Kyoka (a trusted source). A CPU-Z diagnostic revealed the unannounced CPU's turboboost capability reaching 4.5 GHz, while base frequency sat at the 2.8 GHz mark.

According to ITHome's investigative piece, Team Blue: "tested a very special desktop processor: it uses the Meteor Lake architecture, has 6 performance cores and 8 energy efficiency cores (6P+8E), but the performance cores (P-cores) do not support Hyper-Threading. The production date of the product in hand is the 51st week of 2023, which is obviously later than the time when Meteor Lake-S was reported to be cancelled for external sales. From this situation, 'Q46W' may be a development test processor for FCLGA1851 platform or the 800 series chipset. Kyoka believes that the processor should be in the ES2 stage." A Xianyu seller—tbNick_3u8k4—is reportedly offloading a surprising quantity of "Intel Confidential Q46W" processors, allegedly manufactured back in early 2024. Photos show tray-mounted units available for sale on Taobao's second hand market platform. tbNick_3u8k4 mentions that this particular batch of Q46W chips "requires a special motherboard to light up," suggesting that readily available Intel 800 Series chipset-based models are not fit for purpose.

Intel's "Arrow Lake Refresh" Core Ultra 300 Series Comes with K and KF SKUs Only

Back in February, we reported on Intel considering a resurrection of the "Arrow Lake Refresh" Core Ultra 300 series of CPUs. However, it seems that @Jaykihn, a reliable source of Intel leaks, has confirmed that Intel will indeed push the refresh of Arrow Lake in the form of Core Ultra 300 series of CPUs, limited to K and KF SKUs only. This means we will likely see only overclockable SKUs being refreshed, with possibly enhanced boost frequency and/or core count. With 125 W TDP, these new SKUs would target high-end markets, passionate overclockers, and system integrators selling high-end builds with these CPUs. The refresh's journey to confirmation has been turbulent. Initial rumors in 2023 suggested an ambitious core-count bump for Arrow Lake-S, followed by speculation that Intel would prioritize NPU upgrades, potentially mirroring Lunar Lake's reported 48 TOPS capability—a massive leap from the current Core Ultra 9 285 K's 13 TOPS. By late 2023, leaks hinted at the project's cancellation, but insiders like Chinese leaker Golden Pig Upgrade later revived hopes, asserting that desktop-focused "ARL-S Refresh" had been quietly resurrected.

Jaykihn's latest intel narrows the scope: only K/KF-series chips will receive tweaks, leaving non-overclockable SKUs untouched. Intel is also reportedly developing new performance profiles for existing Arrow Lake CPUs, separate from warranty-voiding BIOS tweaks. These optimizations, alongside the upcoming Intel Performance Optimization (IPO) program, aim to help OEMs and system integrators push pre-built systems further via safer, stability-focused adjustments to clock speeds, power limits, and memory overclocking. While enthusiasts may still prefer manual overclocking, IPO could democratize performance gains for mainstream users. The Core Ultra 300 series will slot into Intel's LGA-1851 roadmap between the base Arrow Lake-S (Core Ultra 200) and 2026's next-gen Nova Lake-S (Core Ultra 400).

Shuttle Unveils New DN11-Series, High-Performance AI-PCs for Demanding Applications

We are excited to announce the upcoming availability of the new Shuttle DN11-Series, featuring the DN11H5, DN11H7, and DN11H9. These AI-powered, high-performance barebone PCs are designed to meet the needs of modern business, industrial, and creative applications.

Powerful AI Performance in a Compact Form
At the heart of the DN11-Series are Intel Core Ultra processors, offering a significant performance boost with their hybrid core architecture, Intel Arc graphics, and a dedicated NPU (Neural Processing Unit) for AI acceleration. These systems provide up to 34 TOPS of AI performance, making them ideal for machine learning, data analysis, multimedia processing, and industrial automation.

Dune: Awakening Pre-Orders Now Live; Special Editions, and PC Specs Revealed

Dune: Awakening, the multiplayer survival game inspired by Frank Herbert's legendary sci-fi novel and Legendary Entertainment's award-winning films, will launch on May 20th. Funcom is excited to share that pre-orders begin today, and gamers everywhere are now less than two months away from descending upon the most dangerous planet in the universe.

The standard edition, the Deluxe Edition, and the Ultimate Edition are now available for pre-order on Steam, with the latter including, among many other goodies, an incredible, 90-minute-long digital soundtrack. In celebration of this moment, Funcom has prepared a journey behind the scenes of the making of the music, giving viewers a unique glimpse at how award-winning composer Knut Avenstroup Haugen brought the album to life with a live orchestra at the legendary AIR Lyndhurst studio in London.

Intel Sparks Foundry Succession: Dr. Ann Kelleher to Retire After 30 Years of Work at Intel

Intel just started a succession of its Foundry division management. According to an Intel spokesperson for Tom's Hardware, Dr. Ann Kelleher is heading for retirement after spending 30 years at Intel. Dr. Kelleher is the executive vice president of Intel Foundry and has been the head of foundry technology development since 2020. For the past 30 years, Dr. Kelleher has been there for Intel's ups and downs, overcoming many challenges for the company. This year, Dr. Kelleher's impressive 30-year run at Intel is coming to an end as she heads to a well-deserved retirement. While not being active, her immense knowledge and education are still valuable, and she will remain a board advisor.

Succeeding her at the head of the Foundry front-end division will be Naga Chandrasekaran, who brings over three decades of semiconductor experience, 20 of which have been spent at Micron. Assisting Naga Chandrasekaran with back-end foundry operations like packaging will be Navid Shahriari, who spent over 35 years at Intel and is currently a senior vice president. In a statement for Tom's Hardware, Intel noted: "As previously announced, Dr. Ann Kelleher plans to retire later this year following a distinguished career spanning over 30 years with Intel. With a strong foundry leadership team in place and Intel 18A progressing well ahead of our first product launch and external customer tape-outs, this is a well-planned transition as we continue to advance our Foundry priorities in service to customers."
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