New Intel CPU range reportedly contains some seriously advanced gaming GPU tech

Intel's new lineup of Nova Lake CPUs will reportedly contain some of the company's most advanced GPU tech, leaving the existing Battlemage architecture in the past. Not only is the new Intel CPU lineup expected to make use of Intel's forthcoming Xe3 Celestial graphics architecture, but it could also take parts from its Xe4 Druid graphics system.

Intel has been facing growing pressure from AMD in the world of integrated graphics lately, with even AMD-based MSI Claw handhelds now being available, despite being an Intel-exclusive range beforehand. Meanwhile, as we saw in our recent Asus ROG Flow Z13 review, AMD now has a seriously powerful integrated GPU, and Intel currently has nothing to rival it.

This latest rumor comes from Intel tech leaker Jaykihn, who has regularly been on the ball when it comes to new Intel tech. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Jaykihn claims that Intel's Nova Lake S CPUs (where the S signifies socketed chips for desktop PCs) will feature Xe3 and Xe4 graphics tech.

In a follow-up post, Jaykihn then also clarified that the graphics portion will apparently be based on the Xe3 (Celestial) GPU architecture, while the display and media section looks like it will use tech from the even newer Xe4 (Druid) architecture, perhaps with the two sections based on separate tiles.

If this is true, that shows some very quick movement from Intel, as it's only recently introduced its first Xe2 Battlemage gaming GPUs, and the first Nova Lake CPUs are expected to come out in 2026.

Comparatively, even AMD's latest Radeon 8060S integrated GPUs are still based on its old RDNA 3.5 architecture, rather than its new RDNA 4 tech, and historically, the integrated GPUs in its Ryzen G-series GPUs for desktops have lagged a long way behind the company's latest desktop graphics cards. As a case in point, the Ryzen 7 5700G still used Radeon RX Vega graphics, even though two generations of RDNA 2 GPUs had already been released by that point.

Of course, this is all just rumor and speculation right now, as Intel hasn't confirmed any details about what's coming in Nova Lake yet. However, if this is true, it shows that Intel is potentially accelerating its GPU development, possibly with a view to taking on AMD's integrated graphics systems.

In the meantime, check out our guide to the best gaming CPU if you want a new processor now, as well as our CPU install guide, which takes you through the whole upgrade process.

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