Intel has announced its new series of Core Ultra Series 3 processors, its first AI PC platform built on Intel 18A process technology to be designed and manufactured in the US. According to the company, the Core Ultra Series 3 chips are the “most broadly adopted and globally available AI PC platform Intel has ever delivered.”
At CES 2026, the company revealed the new Intel Core Ultra X9 and X7 processors, which integrate Intel Arc graphics. The new processors are developed to deliver up to 16 CPU-cores, 12 Xe-cores, and 50 NPU TOPS. Intel claims that the new chips can deliver up to 60% better multithread performance over its predecessors. Additionally, users can expect over 77% faster gaming performance and up to 27 hours of battery life from devices powered by the X9 and X7 chips.
The brand new chips are built on the Intel 18A process technology, which may prove to be very important over their lineage. On top of being positioned as the most advanced chips manufactured in the US, 18A technology was a core pillar of former CEO Pat Gelsinger’s plan to reinvigorate Intel within the chip-making sector. However, Gelsinger was not able to fully realize this vision before stepping down as CEO and from the board of directors in 2024.
Despite Gelsinger’s departure, it appears as though Intel is still gunning to utilize the 18A process technology. Short for 18 Angstrom, 18A is a measurement for the transistor size in chips. While many chipmakers now utilize the 3nm process, 18A is actually much smaller, almost equal to 1.8 nanometers. In theory, this places Intel at a very competitive level against TSMC, which is developing its most advanced chip process, the N2.
Intel claims that its latest chips will be used across 200 designs from global partners. The Core Ultra X9 and X7 processors are expected to be integrated across all of its partnering OEMs, including Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Samsung, etc. In fact, the Core Ultra X9 has already been shown to be powering this year’s Asus Zenbook Duo.
Preorders for the first laptops powered by the Core Ultra X9 and X7 processors have already begun. Additional designs are expected within the first quarter of 2026.
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