- First platform built on Intel 18A
- Powering over 200 PC designs
- Series 3 processors are certified for use cases at the edge like robotics, smart cities and automation
At CES 2026 event, currently being held in Las Vegas, Intel has unveiled Intel Core Ultra Series 3 processors, the first AI PC platform built on Intel 18A process technology that was designed and manufactured in the United States. Powering over 200 designs from leading, global partners, Series 3 is planned to be the most broadly adopted and globally available AI PC platform Intel has ever delivered.
Jim Johnson, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Client Computing Group, Intel, commented: “With Series 3, we are laser focused on improving power efficiency, adding more CPU performance, a bigger GPU in a class of its own, more AI compute and app compatibility you can count on with x86.”
Series 3 adds a new class of Intel Core Ultra X9 and X7 Processors
Within the Intel Core Ultra Series 3 mobile lineup, a new class of Intel Core Ultra X9 and X7 processors come packed with high performing, integrated Intel® Arc™ graphics. They are purpose-built for multitaskers that handle advanced workloads like gaming, creation and productivity on the go. The top SKUs feature up to 16 CPU cores, 12 Xe -cores and 50 NPU TOPS, delivering up to 60% better multithread performance (vs. Lunar Lake, based on Cinebench testing), and over 77% faster gaming performance (vs. Lunar Lake, based on internal testing over 45 game titles) and up to 27 hours of battery life (tests performed using Netflix streaming as the base).
The Series 3 family also includes Intel Core processors, intentionally designed to power mainstream mobile systems. Leveraging the same foundational architecture of Intel Core Ultra Series 3, the Intel Core lineup will enable more effective functioning and efficient laptop designs at lower price points.
Series 3 Accelerates AI Adoption in Robotics, Smart Cities, Automation and Healthcare
For the first time, alongside their PC counterparts, Series 3 edge processors are certified for embedded and industrial use cases, including extended temperature ranges, deterministic performance, and 24×7 reliability.
Intel Core Ultra Series 3 delivers competitive advantages in critical edge AI workloads with up to 1.9x higher LLM (large language model) performance*, and up to 4.5x higher throughput on vision language action (VLA) models, based on internal testing. The integrated AI acceleration enables superior total cost of ownership (TCO) through a single system on chip (SoC) solution versus traditional multi-chip CPU and GPU architectures.
Availability
Pre-orders for the first consumer laptops powered by Intel Core Ultra Series 3 processors will begin 6 January 2026. Systems will be available globally starting 27 January 2026, with additional designs coming throughout the first half of the year.
Edge systems powered by Intel Core Ultra Series 3 will be available starting Q2 2026.
*As estimated by DeepSeek Ilama-8B first token latency on Intel Core Ultra X9 processor 388H vs. NVIDIA Jetson Orin™ AGX 64GB for BS1 and INT4. Individual system results may vary as power and performance are affected by use, configuration and other factors.
