Intel’s been quiet for a while, but it looks like they’re cooking up something big. Rumors are circulating about their upcoming Nova Lake-S chips, which could bring a massive overhaul to their architecture. We’re talking up to 52 cores, a significant jump from their current 24-core limit.
The rumors started with insiders @chi11eddog and @jaykihn0, who claim the new chips will arrive in late 2026. If true, the top-of-the-line Intel Core Ultra 9 385K will pack 16 high-performance cores, 32 energy-efficient cores, and 4 low-power cores. This would make it the most powerful desktop chip Intel has ever made, with more than double the cores of its current flagship.
But that’s not all – the Nova Lake-S lineup is expected to include several models, starting at 12 cores and going all the way up to 52. The Intel Core Ultra 7, for example, might come with 42 cores, while the Core Ultra 5 could have up to three different variants, with 28, 24, or 18 cores. Even the entry-level Core Ultra 3 is expected to have 12 or 16 cores.
Here’s a breakdown of the rumored specs:
- Core Ultra 9: 52 cores (16 P-cores, 32 E-cores, 4 LP-E cores), 150W
- Core Ultra 7: 42 cores (14 P-cores, 24 E-cores, 4 LP-E cores), 150W
- Core Ultra 5: 28 cores (8 P-cores, 16 E-cores, 4 LP-E cores), 125W
- Core Ultra 5: 24 cores (8 P-cores, 12 E-cores, 4 LP-E cores), 125W
- Core Ultra 5: 18 cores (6 P-cores, 8 E-cores, 4 LP-E cores), 125W
- Core Ultra 3: 16 cores (4 P-cores, 8 E-cores, 4 LP-E cores), 65W
- Core Ultra 3: 12 cores (4 P-cores, 4 E-cores, 4 LP-E cores), 65W
The new design is expected to use a tile-based approach, with the low-power cores separated from the rest of the chip. This is similar to what Intel did with Meteor Lake. The key to Nova Lake-S is its flexibility and performance, thanks to a multi-tile architecture. The P-cores will use a new design called Coyote Cove, which is optimized for single-threaded workloads. The E-cores, on the other hand, will use the Arctic Wolf architecture, which is better suited for multi-threaded tasks. The low-power cores will be an evolution of the E-cores, designed for background tasks and low-power operation.
The Nova Lake-S platform will use a new socket, LGA 1854, and a 900-series chipset. This means that anyone with an Intel Core Ultra 200 will need to upgrade their motherboard. The new chips will also support DDR5 memory with speeds of up to 8000 MT/s, which is 50% faster than Arrow Lake-S. And, if you’re into overclocking, you might be able to push it even higher, up to 10000 MT/s.
The new chipset is expected to support up to 48 PCIe lanes, with 24 of them being PCIe 5.0. You’ll also get expanded USB and SATA connectivity for high-end systems. Another significant improvement is the graphics. The Nova Lake-S is rumored to use a hybrid iGPU architecture, with Xe3 “Celestial” for gaming and Xe4 “Druid” for display and video playback. This separation of tasks could lead to better performance in both areas, as well as improved media encoding and decoding.
It’s clear that Intel is trying to regain its lead in the desktop CPU market, which is currently dominated by AMD. With AMD preparing to launch its own Zen 6 chips, which will also have more cores and improved performance, the competition is heating up. We’ll have to wait and see if Intel can deliver on its promises and take back the crown.
Source: TechSpot