Intel and Nvidia have just dropped a bombshell announcement: these tech giants are officially collaborating to produce Intel CPUs with integrated Nvidia GeForce RTX GPUs. And no, this isn’t just for massive AI data centers; these innovative chips are being designed specifically for personal computers.
Historically, AMD has held a unique advantage, possessing both an x86 architecture license—essential for most modern gaming PCs—and a robust GPU division, thanks to its acquisition of ATi in 2006. Nvidia, however, has lacked an x86 license, while Intel’s integrated graphics haven’t traditionally been their strongest suit.
This new partnership, bringing Nvidia’s integrated GPUs to Intel CPUs, is poised to dramatically alter this landscape. We could soon see significant shifts in the rankings for both the best gaming CPUs and the best gaming handhelds.
In a joint statement, the companies declared: “For personal computing, Intel will build and offer to the market x86 system-on-chips (SOCs) that integrate Nvidia RTX GPU chiplets. These new x86 RTX SOCs will power a wide range of PCs that demand integration of world-class CPUs and GPUs.” These GPUs will be integrated as ‘chiplets,’ meaning the CPU won’t be a single silicon chip, but rather a package housing several smaller dies, one of which will be the Nvidia GPU.
A major win for Intel will undoubtedly be access to Nvidia’s advanced AI technology. While current Intel Arrow Lake CPUs feature a modest built-in NPU rated at 13 TOPs, this figure could skyrocket with the inclusion of Nvidia’s Tensor cores. This opens up the exciting possibility of future Intel CPUs running features like DLSS without the need for a separate graphics card.
For Nvidia, this deal provides a crucial entry point into the x86 CPU market, an area they’ve largely been absent from. While Nvidia’s current CPUs, based on the Arm architecture, are powerful and energy-efficient, the x86 architecture remains dominant in most PCs.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang hailed the agreement as a “historic collaboration,” emphasizing that it will “expand our ecosystems and lay the foundation for the next era of computing.” This news is certainly a challenge for AMD, which currently dominates the x86 CPU market with integrated GPUs, particularly in consoles and handhelds. This new alliance could completely redefine the competition.
More details about these groundbreaking chips are expected to be unveiled during a webcast press conference scheduled for today at 10 am Pacific time.