Intel confirmed today which core microarchitectures will power its next-generation client and server processors, doubling down on previous rumors that "Coyote Cove" P-cores will power the "Nova Lake" family and "Panther Cove" P-cores will power the "Diamond Rapids" line. The details are outlined in Intel's latest ISA reference update and provide the clearest public signal yet about the company's roadmap through 2026. Nova Lake and Diamond Rapids are both slated for release next year, and the confirmation removes much of the guesswork about which P-core and E-core designs each family will use. On the client side, Nova Lake will pair Coyote Cove P-cores with "Arctic Wolf" E-cores and introduce an updated integrated graphics tile based on the Xe3 lineage.

Desktop Nova Lake-S parts are expected to scale to very high core counts, up to 52 cores, while HX mobile variants will focus on iGPU in power-optimized packages. Intel is also planning a platform update with an LGA 1954 socket, and the company suggests that it will deliver meaningful improvements in IPC and performance per watt compared to the previous Cougar Cove and Darkmont designs. For servers, Diamond Rapids will use Panther Cove P-cores, push core density aggressively, and is expected to arrive in the second half of 2026. These initial Panther Cove server chips will not include simultaneous multithreading, a decision Intel appears set to correct with the follow-up "Coral Rapids" family, which will reintroduce Hyper-Threading for datacenter workloads. There is also discussion of a Panther Cove-X variant designed for workstation users and a Wildcat Lake entry tier that will replace Twin Lake, utilizing Cougar Cove P-cores and Darkmont E-cores.

More...