Intel’s ‘Panther Lake’ CPUs stay on monitor amid huge layoffs

Intel mentioned Thursday that the corporate’s subsequent large CPU wager, Panther Lake, stays on monitor to start delivery this yr, and the supporting 18A manufacturing course of has already entered manufacturing. Nonetheless, Intel plans to finish 2025 with simply 75,000 workers because it continues lowering its workforce.

Intel chief government Lip-Bu Tan additionally characterised Intel’s transfer away from hyperthreading, begun with its “Arrow Lake” chip, as a mistake.

As Intel reported earnings for the second quarter of 2025, the corporate’s message was that it continues to execute on a technique to give attention to prospects and engineering. As a part of that, Intel recorded $1.9 billion in restructuring costs, largely to do with reorganizing manufacturing and meeting operations.

“I do know the previous few months haven’t been simple,” Intel chief government Lip-Bu Tan wrote in a memo to workers. “We’re making onerous however obligatory choices to streamline the group, drive higher effectivity and enhance accountability at each degree of the corporate.”

Tan’s targets are to “right-size” the corporate’s workforce and maintain them to account, by each trimming headcount and thinning the ranks of center administration. Tan additionally mentioned that the corporate is slowing the event of its Ohio chip fab — which was funded partially by the CHIPS Act, signed throughout the Biden administration. Intel plans to consolidate its meeting and check operations in Costa Rica to bigger websites in Vietnam and Malaysia, and never go ahead with “initiatives” in Poland and Germany. Intel was rumored to presumably shutter operations in Israel, however that hasn’t occurred. Tan referred to as Intel’s manufacturing facility technique “needlessly fragmented” in a convention name with analysts.

Intel’s chip roadmap is on monitor

Tan, nonetheless, appears to be fully behind Intel’s present product roadmap, which is centered on Intel’s next-generation Panther Lake chip and the supporting 18A course of. He referred to as the 18A course of (and a associated 18A-P course of) “the muse of not less than the subsequent three generations of Intel shopper and server merchandise,” Tan mentioned, delivering significant wafer volumes into the subsequent decade.

“Panther Lake is our prime precedence as it would reinforce our energy in notebooks throughout shopper and enterprise,” Tan informed workers. “We additionally should drive continued progress on Nova Lake to shut gaps within the high-end desktop house.”

The primary Panther Lake processor stays on monitor to start delivery later this yr, with extra merchandise coming within the first half of 2026, Intel mentioned.

Tan mentioned that he’ll log off on each new main product earlier than it tapes out. Tan additionally mentioned in an analyst name that he was not a believer in “should you construct it, they may come.” As an alternative, Intel will construct what prospects need, after they want it, he mentioned.

Apparently, Tan additionally criticized Intel’s determination to eradicate hyperthreading, also called simultaneous hyperthreading (SMT). Although he addressed this as a problem within the information heart, will probably be fascinating to see whether or not Intel makes an analogous determination to return hyperthreading to its desktop and shopper chips, as effectively.

“Transferring away from SMT put us at a aggressive drawback,” Tan mentioned. “Bringing it again will assist us shut efficiency gaps.”

Lastly, Intel will transfer away from a strictly silicon-based method to AI. “We are going to focus our AI efforts on creating a cohesive silicon, system, and software program stack technique,” Tan mentioned.

“We’ve so much to repair to maneuver the corporate ahead, Tan mentioned. “And I’m decided to drive the modifications obligatory to enhance our efficiency.”

Intel misplaced $2.9 billion for the second quarter, beneath the GAAP methodology, recording flat income of $12.9 billion. Intel’s outlook, nonetheless, was higher than anticipated: $12.6 billion to $13.6 billion, which was greater than what Wall Road anticipated. Intel’s Consumer Computing Group revenues fell 3 p.c versus the identical quarter in 2024, right down to $7.9 billion.