Intel confirms Nova Lake will use 18A-P and promises more details at CES in January
Intel has confirmed that Nova Lake will use its 18A-P manufacturing process. Lip-Bu Tan, CEO of the companyhas identified this family as its first PC product based on that node during the presentation of results for the third quarter of 2026.
The manager assures that development is progressing ahead of schedule and plans to double the designs awarded to Nova Lake compared to those that Panther Lake had at its launch. Intel will give more information at CES in January. The intervention confirms the manufacturing process, but leaves the commercial models and their definitive characteristics pending.
Confirmation comes after rumors about TSMC
The manufacturing of Nova Lake had led to information pointing to a distribution between Intel and TSMC. Previous versions indicated an initial use of N2 for a good part of the calculation blocks and a later transfer to Intel 18A-P.
Tan’s words allow 18A-P to be officially attributed to Nova Lake. However, that statement does not break down the origin of each processor module or publish manufacturing percentages assigned to suppliers. Presenting it as proof that absolutely all the parts will come from Intel factories would go beyond what was announced.
In a multi-block processor, the compute component node also does not necessarily determine the processing of graphics or input and output functions. To close this distribution, package specifications or a technical explanation from Intel will be needed.
What changes in Intel 18A-P
Intel 18A-P is an evolution of 18A, the process used by Panther Lake. The company announced in June that it had entered venture production, a preparation and validation stage prior to large-scale commercial manufacturing.
The documentation attributes 9% more performance to 18A-P with the same consumption or 18% less consumption when maintaining performance compared to 18A. These are process comparisons under specific conditions, not measured results of Nova Lake versus a previous processor.
Among the changes is Power Boosta transistor option with double contact and lower resistance. Intel also describes improvements to internal connections and thermal behavior. The technical goal is to make it easier for designers to adjust frequency and consumption within the limits of each product.
The node maintains compatibility with 18A design ruleswhich allows the reuse of intellectual property and work tools. This compatibility refers to the development of silicon and does not imply that future processors share a motherboard or socket with current families.
The company presents the advance within a renewal of its catalog for PC that iIncludes Panther Lake and Wildcat Lake. In the same conference, management expresses its intention to improve its position in the high-end desktop range with Nova Lake. This is a commercial expectation, still pending the products and their reception.
The 52 cores are still part of the leaks
Previous information attributes configurations with one or two calculation blocks to Nova Lake. Each would have up to eight Coyote Cove performance cores and 16 Arctic Wolf efficiency cores, with another four energy-efficient cores in a separate block.
This distribution would give up to 28 cores with one calculation block and 52 with two. Tan’s intervention does not confirm these configurations or the supposed order of arrival, so they should continue to be treated as leaked data.
The next public commitment is to expand the information at the CES in January 2027. Intel has not converted that appointment into a sale date for all Nova Lakes nor has it published prices, frequencies or consumption of the commercial models in this intervention.
