Intel launches Lunar Lake chips to rival Qualcomm in AI PC segment: Details

PCs powered by Intel's new Core Ultra 200V series chips (Lunar Lake) will get Copilot+ PC features over an update starting November this year

American chipmaker Intel has unveiled its latest Core Ultra 200V series processors, also known as Lunar Lake chips, designed to compete with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X Elite and AMD’s Ryzen AI 300 series processors for PCs. 

Intel claims that these new processors deliver enhanced power efficiency without compromising on performance and application compatibility. Additionally, the company announced that PCs powered by Intel’s Core Ultra 200V series will be eligible to receive Copilot+ PC features through an update beginning in November.

For reference, Microsoft’s Copilot+ PC experience is presently exclusive to devices equipped with Arm architecture-based processors, such as the Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X Elite chip. The Copilot+ platform provides unique generative AI capabilities, including advanced image generation tools integrated into applications like Paint and Photos. 

However, the devices powered by Arm chips currently enjoy native support for only a limited range of applications. In contrast, Intel's Core Ultra 200V series processors, built on the x86 architecture, aim to offer the best of both worlds.

Intel said that PC manufacturers including Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo, LG, MSI, and Samsung are developing devices powered by the Core Ultra 200V series processors, which will be available worldwide starting September 24.

Intel Core Ultra 200V series processor

Intel Core Ultra 200V series: Details

Intel said that Core Ultra 200V series processors consume up to 50 per cent less energy compared to its predecessor. Additionally, it can perform up to 120 tera operations per second (TOPS) across various components, including the central processing unit (CPU), graphics processing unit (GPU), and neural processing unit (NPU). 

As for handling AI workloads, the company said that the fourth-generation NPU is four times more powerful than the previous generation, making on-device AI processing faster. 

With the Core Ultra 200V series processors, Intel has also introduced its new Xe2 graphics microarchitecture that the company said offers significant improvement in graphics processing. 

The integrated Intel Arc GPU on the new processors feature eight second generation Xe cores and eight ray tracing units. Ray Tracing is a graphic processing technique that simulates realistic lighting and shadow, offering more life-like graphics in games and creative apps. It also adds support for up to three 4K resolution monitors.