Intel's 18A-based CPUs won't ramp to high volume production until 2026

Logic technology lead.

Intel's next-generation 20A (2nm-class) and 18A (1.8nm-class) manufacturing technologies are crucial for Intel's success and profitability in the mid-term future. Both fabrication processes will be production-ready this year, but it will be quite some time before they will account for a sizeable share of Intel's wafer shipments. In fact, Intel said 18A-based CPUs will only ramp to high volume in 2026. 

"We will be ramping the first products Panther Lake and Clearwater Forest — the first client product and the first server product [based on 18A] — in 2025," said Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger at the company's webinar. "We will start to ramp to higher volumes in 2026 for 18A." 

(Image credit: Intel)

Intel's codenamed Panther Lake processor for client PCs is something of a mystery for now and the only thing that we can be sure of is that it will inherit a multi-chiplet design from its predecessor, as this seems to be a common way for the company to build its client offerings going forward. As for Clearwater Forest, this will be the company's 2nd Generation Xeon processor for datacenters based on energy-efficient cores. This particular CPU will rely on the codenamed Darkmont cores, though it remains to be seen how these will be different from the previous-generation Skymont cores.

(Image credit: Intel)

For Intel, 18A is more than just two products as this technology will also be used by a number of its foundry partners — so ramping up production flawlessly is crucial for the company. Intel expects quite a lot from its 1.8-angstrom fabrication technology, particularly when it comes to performance-per-watt compared to the competition. But 18A is not exactly around the corner for Intel.  

"The bulk of our wafers in 2025 are driven by Intel 7 and Intel 10," Gelsinger said. "So, that moderates the margin benefits that we get as we ramp the new EUV nodes, so we will see a good amount of Intel 3 in 2025, small amounts of 18A wafers [in 2025], [but] we will see a good amount of 18A wafers in 2026. […] Obviously, those volumes just continue to swing to more modern post-DUV nodes over the horizon."