Refreshed Intel Arrow Lake-S CPUs will reportedly use the same NPU as predecessor

Just last week, rumours emerged over Intel's upcoming Arrow Lake Refresh, with some suggesting it would bring not only higher clock speeds but also an upgraded NPU to the desktop to improve local AI peformance. However, according to a new report, those plans have been scaled back, with the refresh now looking to be a minor upgrade.

Initially, reports suggested the refresh would see desktop (S-series) and high-end mobile (HX-series) CPUs get a faster NPU, more specifically, the same unit found in the Copilot+ approved Lunar Lake chips. This was seen as a significant upgrade that would bring enhanced AI capabilities to Intel's product stack. Now, well-known leaker Jaykihn, who had previously corroborated the NPU upgrade rumour, has reversed course, stating that the plan has been cancelled.

With the NPU upgrade seemingly off the table, the Arrow Lake Refresh is shaping up to be a simple clock speed bump. This also pours cold water on any earlier, more ambitious speculation about SKUs with increased core counts. The current consensus is that the refresh will be a modest frequency boost targeted exclusively at the unlocked K and KF-series processors at the top of the stack.

This scaled-back approach is also expected to be reflected in the product's branding. Leakers suggest Intel will keep the refreshed chips under the existing ‘Core Ultra 200' series banner, rather than creating a new 300 series. This would avoid making a small, confusing generation gap before the next major architecture arrives.

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KitGuru says: The improved NPU made the Arrow Lake refresh a bit more interesting, but now we're unsure if that improved NPU will even make an appearance. If that proves to be the case, it looks like we'll have to wait for Nova Lake for a significant update.

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