A gobsmacking 52-core Intel CPU could be on the way

Intel could be working on a monstrous desktop CPU. Although Intel pushed core counts up on its desktop chips with the release of 12th-gen Alder Lake processors, the most recent Arrow Lake chips like the Core Ultra 9 285K have dialed things back. Intel's Nova Lake chips, which will reportedly use the Core Ultra 400 name and arrive in 2026, are rumored to take things up a notch with a flagship chip reaching up to 52 cores.

Intel's flagship Nova Lake CPU could pack 52 cores

That's a lot of cores

The details about Intel's Nova Lake desktop lineup come from @chi11eddog on X, as spotted by Wccftech. The leaker posted preliminary core counts for seven processors that will apparently be included in Intel's desktop Nova Lake lineup, from a 12-core Core Ultra 3 chip up to the 52-core Core Ultra 9 flagship. As expected, these chips won't use full, fat cores across the entire chip. The flagship Core Ultra 9 model will reportedly use 16 performance (P) cores, 32 efficient (E) cores, and 4 low-power efficient (LP-E) cores.

In addition to the core counts, the leaker also posted power draw metrics, claiming the Core Ultra 9 and 7 models will climb to 150W, the Core Ultra 5 models will consume 125W, and the Core Ultra 3 models will use just 65W. Those numbers are in-line with what we'd expect out of desktop processors from Intel, but it's important to handle the core counts and power draw with skepticism. Intel hasn't revealed anything official about Nova Lake yet, and it's still a generation away.

This year, Intel is focused on Panther Lake. Intel has confirmed that this generation, which falls under the Core Ultra Series 3 branding, will launch in the second half of the year with the LGA 1851 socket. It's built on Intel's 18A node, which is a significant shift in Intel's process roadmap. Last year, Intel canceled its long-awaited 20A node to focus engineering efforts on 18A, which has reportedly already picked up interest with contracts from Microsoft and the US Department of Defense, among others.

Intel moved to the LGA 1851 socket with the release of Arrow Lake CPUs like the Core Ultra 7 265K, which will reportedly be supported by Intel until 2026. However, the rumor mill suggests that Intel will move to the LGA 1954 socket with Nova Lake, potentially locking out a CPU upgrade for users with an LGA 1851 board. Intel has confirmed that Nova Lake is in development, and the chips are expected to arrive some time next year. Intel hasn't confirmed an official release timeline, however.