Intel’s CES 2024: A Deep Dive into Executive Keynotes and Events on AI Advancements

At CES, Intel revealed its comprehensive strategy to expand the reach of the company’s AI everywhere initiative into the automotive market. This involved the acquisition of Silicon Mobility, a fabless silicon and software company known for its expertise in designing SoCs for intelligent electric vehicle (EV) energy management. Simultaneously, Intel introduced a novel family of AI-enhanced software-defined vehicle system-on-chips (SoCs), with Zeekr becoming the inaugural original equipment manufacturer (OEM) to embrace this innovation. Zeekr’s adoption of the new SoC brings generative AI-driven living room experiences to the forefront of next-generation vehicles.

The CES 2024 event served as a platform for Intel to further build on the recent excitement generated by the launches of the 5th Gen Intel® Xeon® and Intel® Core™ Ultra processors. Underscoring its unwavering commitment to innovation, Intel showcased how its technologies, when combined with innovative and open software, empower artificial intelligence for both consumers and businesses. Throughout the event, held from January 9-12 in Las Vegas, Intel executives actively engaged in discussions with key industry customers and partners.

Jack Weast, the vice president and general manager of Intel Automotive, emphasized the company’s comprehensive approach to address the industry’s major challenges. By integrating innovative AI solutions across the entire vehicle platform, Intel aimed to facilitate the industry’s transition to electric vehicles (EVs). The acquisition of Silicon Mobility was seen as aligning with Intel’s sustainability goals while addressing a crucial need for energy management in the industry.

The shift toward EVs, coupled with consumer demand for enhanced in-vehicle experiences, propelled Intel’s strategy to empower the Software-Defined Vehicle (SDV). Additionally, Intel committed to delivering the industry’s first open Universal Chiplet Interconnect Architecture (UCIe)-based chiplet platform for SDVs. Collaborating with imec, Intel ensured that the packaging technologies met the stringent quality and reliability standards of the automotive industry. Intel also took the lead in chairing a new international standard for EV power management, shaping the industry’s future.

As of today, Intel SoCs are integrated into over 50 million vehicles, driving functionalities like infotainment, displays, and digital instrument clusters. Looking ahead, Intel’s expanded AI-enhanced “whole vehicle” roadmap is poised to guide the industry towards a more scalable, software-defined, and sustainable future.

In a strategic move to advance its position in the automotive market, Intel successfully acquired Silicon Mobility SAS, a fabless automotive silicon, and software company. The acquired company, a portfolio entity of Cipio Partners and Capital-E, specializes in designing, developing, and deploying System-on-Chips (SoCs) for Electric Vehicle (EV) energy management. Silicon Mobility’s SoCs boast cutting-edge accelerators meticulously crafted for energy delivery, featuring co-designed advanced software algorithms that significantly enhance vehicle energy efficiency.

Intel’s aim with this acquisition is to expand its influence in the automotive sector, going beyond high-performance computing to encompass intelligent and programmable power devices. The acquisition process is contingent upon obtaining necessary approvals.

AI-enhanced Software-Defined Vehicle (SDV) SoCs

Intel introduced a new family of AI-enhanced Software-Defined Vehicle (SDV) SoCs, addressing a crucial industry demand for power and performance scalability. These SoCs leverage AI acceleration capabilities from Intel’s AI PC roadmap, catering to various in-vehicle AI use cases, including driver and passenger monitoring. A demonstration showcased the simultaneous operation of 12 advanced workloads, such as generative AI, e-mirrors, high-definition video conference calling, and PC games, across multiple operating systems. This demonstration highlighted how automakers can streamline their legacy Electronic Control Unit (ECU) architecture, leading to improved efficiency, manageability, and scalability. This integration allows automakers to incorporate their custom solutions and AI applications seamlessly.

Jack Weast, addressing the significance of Intel’s AI-enhanced SDV SoCs, emphasized their amalgamation of the best elements from AI PC and Intel data center technologies. This integration is pivotal for establishing a genuine software-defined vehicle architecture.

In a recent development, Zeekr, a brand under Geely, emerged as the pioneer Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) to adopt Intel’s latest family of Software-Defined Vehicle (SDV) System-on-Chips (SoCs). Andy An, the President of Geely Holding Group and CEO of Zeekr Intelligent Technology, expressed how the forward-compatibility feature on Intel systems, coupled with Intel’s AI acceleration, empowers Zeekr to continually scale and enhance services. This capability allows them to meet the evolving demands of customers, introducing next-gen experiences like generative AI-based voice assistants.

Recognizing the need for open standards in propelling the electric vehicle (EV) transition and fostering sustainable Software-Defined Vehicles (SDV), Intel and SAE International jointly announced the formation of a committee. This committee is tasked with establishing an automotive standard for Vehicle Platform Power Management, known as J3311. Intel assumed the role of chair for this committee.

Drawing inspiration from the successful power management techniques of the PC industry’s ACPI standard, the new SAE standard seeks to expedite progress by incorporating and refining advanced power management concepts from the PC sector. This collaborative effort aims to enhance the energy efficiency and sustainability of all EVs. The standards committee already boasts representation from industry players like Stellantis, HERE, and Monolithic Power Systems (MPS). It remains open to additional industry participation, with a goal to deliver the first draft standard within 12 to 18 months.

In a parallel initiative, Intel expressed its intention to collaborate with the Research and Development hub imec. This collaboration aims to ensure that Intel’s advanced chiplet packaging technologies meet the rigorous quality and reliability standards essential for automotive applications.

During these discussions, Intel executives explored the role of Intel technologies, including the AI PC, in making artificial intelligence accessible to everyone, everywhere. The announcement of the complete Intel® Core™ 14th Gen mobile and desktop processor lineup, along with the introduction of the new Intel® Core™ Series 1 mobile processor family for high-performance thin-and-light mobile systems, marked significant milestones at the event.

In line with Intel’s commitment to aiding the automotive industry’s transition to a software-defined, sustainable, and scalable future, company leaders introduced Intel’s automotive SDV SoC products. They unveiled an industry-first open automotive chiplet platform and highlighted Intel’s leading standards work with SAE to introduce vehicle power management to the industry.

The interactive technology lounge at the event provided live demonstrations of various Intel solutions, including the AI PC, Intel Automotive software-defined vehicle, Intel Core Ultra, Intel® Arc™ gaming, and Intel® Gaudi®2. Roger Chandler, Intel vice president and general manager of Enthusiast PC and Workstations in the Client Computing Group, expressed excitement about the Intel Core 14th Gen processor family, emphasizing its capability to deliver top-notch performance and platform features for both enthusiast and mainstream PC users. The HX-series processors were highlighted for providing an exceptional mobile experience, while the latest-gen 65-watt and 35-watt desktop processors offered efficient performance and robust platform features for mainstream desktop users.

The Intel Core 14th Gen HX-series mobile processors, designed to cater to gamers, creators, and professionals seeking high compute performance combined with laptop mobility, lead the industry in providing an exceptional user experience. Spearheaded by the Intel Core i9-14900HX, featuring eight Performance-cores (P-cores) and 16 Efficient-cores (E-cores), the HX-series ensures best-in-class connectivity along with outstanding single- and multi-thread performance. Notable improvements in creator performance are achieved, with a 50% increase in E-cores in the Intel Core i7-14700HX processors.

Key features of the new processor family include:

• Turbo frequency up to 5.8 GHz, delivering up to 17% better gaming performance and up to 51% faster multitasking performance compared to the competition.
• i9-14900HX processors with up to 24 cores (eight P-cores, 16 E-cores) and 32 threads.
• i7-14700HX processors with 50% more E-cores, totaling 20 cores (eight P-cores, 12 E-cores) and 28 threads.
• Support for up to 192 gigabytes (GB) of total DDR5-5600 megatransfers/second (MT/S) memory.
• Overclocking capabilities on HX series processors, supported by Intel® Extreme Utility (XTU) and Intel® Extreme Memory Profile (XMP).
• New Intel® Application Optimization (APO) support on HX series, including six new gaming titles (eight total) since the initial Intel Core 14th Gen desktop launch in October 2023.
• Thunderbolt™ 5 with 80 gigabits per second (Gbps) of bi-directional bandwidth and bandwidth boost providing up to 120 Gbps, delivering 3x the capability of today’s fastest solutions.
• Leading wireless features, including integrated Intel® Wi-Fi 6E (Gig+) and available new discrete Intel® Wi-Fi 7 (5 Gig), ensuring multi-gigabit speeds, wired-like responsiveness, and extreme reliability.
• Latest Bluetooth® connectivity, supporting both Bluetooth 5.4 and Bluetooth 5.3 for outstanding performance with multiple simultaneous Bluetooth-enabled device connections.

In the ever-evolving landscape of technology, the spotlight is on the resurgence of the Raptor, marked by the debut of the Intel Core 14th Gen mobile processor family, also recognized as Raptor Lake Refresh. Roger Chandler, the Vice President and General Manager of Enthusiast PC and Workstations in Intel’s Client Computing Group, explores the capabilities embedded in the new HX-series. This series seamlessly combines top-notch connectivity with exceptional single- and multi-thread performance. Particularly, attention is drawn to the Intel Core i9-14900HX, flaunting an impressive configuration of 24 cores, 32 threads, and a turbo frequency reaching up to 5.8 GHz. Moreover, the HX-series elevates creator performance, showcasing a notable 50% increase in E-cores within the Intel Core i7-14700HX processors.

The expansion of the Intel Core 14th Gen desktop stack brings a plethora of possibilities for mainstream PC users and businesses across diverse verticals. With 18 new processors catering to different user demands, this desktop lineup ensures an optimal experience for gaming, creating, and everyday work tasks. Key features of the latest Intel desktop processors include:

Turbo frequency up to 5.8 GHz, providing up to 37% faster multi-thread performance and up to 7% better Microsoft Office performance compared to the previous generation.

• i9-14900 processors with up to 24 cores (eight P-cores, 16 E-cores) and 32 threads.
• i7-14700 processors with an additional four E-cores, totaling 20 cores (eight P-cores, 12 E-cores) and 28 threads.
• Support for up to 192 GB of total DDR5-5600/DDR4-3200 MT/S memory, ensuring backward compatibility with existing Intel 600- and 700-series-based motherboards.
• Continued support for in-box thermal solutions, including the Intel® Laminar RH1 and RM1 coolers.
• Next-generation wireless connectivity with support for both Intel® Killer™ Wi-Fi 7 (5 Gig) and Intel Killer Wi-Fi 6E (Gig+).
• Continued support for PCIe Gen 5.0, Gen 4.0, and Thunderbolt 4, providing 40 Gbps bandwidth, along with integrated USB 3.2 connectivity support offering up to 20 Gbps transfer bandwidth.

Now available online and in stores, the complete Intel Core 14th Gen desktop processor lineup caters to users’ diverse needs, ensuring a perfect fit for every price point. Beyond personal computing, these processors empower vertical markets to tackle AI and compute-intensive workloads efficiently and effectively, from educational environments to medical applications and industrial automation.

In the domain of mobile computing, the recently introduced Intel Core U Processor Series 1 stands out as a symbol of efficiency and well-rounded performance, designed to cater to the preferences of mainstream users in search of slim and lightweight devices. This latest inclusion in the mobile processor family maintains the familiar platform features that are synonymous with Intel’s mobile processors.

Key features of the Intel Core U Processor Series 1 include:

• Turbo frequency of up to 5.4 GHz, accompanied by up to 10 cores (two P-cores, eight E-cores) and 12 threads in the Intel Core i7 processor 150U.
• Support for up to 96 GB of total DDR5-5200/DDR4-3200 MT/S memory.
• Thunderbolt 4 universal connectivity, offering 40 Gbps bandwidth for seamless connection to multiple 4K monitors and accessories.
• Backing for eight PCIe Gen 4.0 and 12 PCIe Gen 3.0 lanes, catering to the latest solid-state drive (SSD) storage solutions.
• Cutting-edge Bluetooth connectivity, supporting both Bluetooth 5.4 and Bluetooth 5.3, including Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) audio for immersive and low-power PC audio experiences. It also introduces Bluetooth Auracast™ capabilities, enhancing audio tuning, personal audio sharing, and accessibility for hearing aids and assisted listening services.
• Next-generation wireless connectivity with backing for both Intel Killer Wi-Fi 7 (5 Gig) and Intel Killer Wi-Fi 6E (Gig+).

Anticipated to hit the market in the first quarter of 2024, mobile systems powered by the Intel Core U Processor Series 1 are set to offer users a seamless computing experience. Stay tuned for further details from Intel’s trusted partners.