Image: Intel

Intel has given an update on the timeline for its long-awaited entry into the discrete graphics game: Arc GPUs for laptops are set to ship soon in Q1 2022 (where theyโ€™ll slot in neatly on machines with Intelโ€™s new 12th Gen Alder Lake H-series CPUs that it launched at CES 2022). Arc desktop GPUs will still have a bit of a wait ahead of them: Intel says that they wonโ€™t be arriving until sometime in Q2, while workstation graphics cards wonโ€™t hit until Q3.

Intel has quietly announced a new, upcoming service for its Arc GPUs โ€” โ€œProject Endgame,โ€ which will allow customers to stream access Intelโ€™s graphics cards for an โ€œalways-accessible, low-latency computing experience.โ€ The exact mechanisms here arenโ€™t totally clear, but it sounds like Intel will allow customers to rent GPUs in the cloud, or even a full-fledged front-end gaming service like Nvidiaโ€™s GeForce Now subscription.

There are almost no details yet on Project Endgame, including things like what kind of GPU access itโ€™ll give customers, how much itโ€™ll cost, or whether itโ€™ll even be a gaming-focused product. But Intel is saying that itโ€™ll arrive sometime later this year, so weโ€™ll presumably find out more soon. The fact that Intel is planning some sort of cloud streaming service is also the latest sign of confidence that the company has in its discrete GPUs.

Youโ€™ve all been patient, and the first wave of #IntelArc GPUs are launching soon for notebooks. Desktops and workstations will soon follow! https://t.co/rXgX9dGEL1 pic.twitter.com/F6ubSUzSHM

โ€” Intel Graphics (@IntelGraphics) February 17, 2022

Additionally, Intel announced that itโ€™s started architecture work on its third-generation of Arc GPUs, codenamed โ€œCelestialโ€. (For reference, Alchemist is the first generation of GPUs thatโ€™s set to arrive this year, while a second generation of hardware, โ€œBattlemageโ€, is already in the works). Most notably, though, is that the third-gen Celestial GPUs are said to offer โ€œa product that will address the ultra-enthusiast segmentโ€ โ€” meaning that Intel could be setting its sights on taking on the graphics cards like Nvidiaโ€™s flagship 3090 Ti or AMDโ€™s RX 6900 XT.

That said, itโ€™s probably worth tempering expectations: after all, Intel still has yet to release its first-generation GPUs yet, and itโ€™ll presumably be some time before itsโ€™ third-generation graphics cards are ready for market.

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