Intel CEO claims Core Ultra laptop chip is 'hot' but the company's near-term outlook still isn't exactly on fire

Intel's Core Ultra laptop chip is hot. So says Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger. No not that kind of hot, but instead selling like hotcakes, apparently. Despite that Intel's latest forecasts were below expectations as the firm continues the battle to turn its fortunes around.

During its latest earnings call (via Seeking Alpha) with analysts, Intel said it expects revenues for the next quarter to hit around $12.5B to $13.5B, lower than the $13.61B the investment analyst community was expecting. And those analysts get terribly grumpy whenever a company underperforms expectations.

That said, the numbers are also in on Intel's latest quarter up to March 30 and revenues are actually up 9% over the first quarter in 2023. So, that's good news. Gelsinger was also bullish about Intel's roadmap.

«As we go into the second half of the year, we're engaging deeply with our customers today, our OEM partners and we just see strength across the board, right. Part of that is driven by our unique product position, some of it driven by the market characteristics and client. AI PC and a second half Windows upgrade cycle, we believe underway. And Core Ultra is hot. And as we said, even in Q2, we're racing,» Gelsinger said.

He explained that Meteor Lake, Intel's latest laptop chip branded Core Ultra, is selling faster than expected and that Intel expected to ship double the number of Core Ultra CPUs in Q2 compared to Q1. Much of that gain will come from Intel's improving ability to manufacture Meteor Lake, which uses a single chiplet based on the latest Intel 4 node, with the remaining four chiplets produced by TSMC's customer foundry.

Gelsinger likewise claimed that Intel is on track to deliver on its promise to deliver five new chip production nodes in just four years. «Job number one was to accelerate our efforts to close the technology gap that was created by over a decade of underinvestment. The heart of Phase 1 was five nodes in four years. The rallying cry was torrid. It combined