Intel’s Angstrom-era roadmap has moved on from its original 20A-then-18A schedule. Intel says 18A entered high-volume manufacturing in late 2025 and identifies Core Ultra Series 3 as the first product family made on it. 20A is best understood as a predecessor development path: work on RibbonFET and PowerVia informed the 18A process family, which is now Intel’s near-term production focus.
What Intel originally planned for 20A and 18A
In 2022, Intel presented 20A and 18A as successive steps in its manufacturing roadmap. It described both as future plans, not as completed production milestones:
| Node | Intel’s 2022 forecast |
|---|---|
| 20A | Up to 15% better performance per watt; manufacturing-ready in the first half of 2024. |
| 18A | An additional 10% improvement; manufacturing-ready in the second half of 2024. |
Those percentages and dates were forward-looking projections. Intel cautioned that future-node performance and schedules are inherently uncertain. The “A” denotes the Angstrom-era naming convention; the node numbers are technology-generation labels, not literal measurements of transistor features or a proportional scale of improvement.
How the roadmap changed into production
The clearest way to read the successive announcements is as a change from a projected schedule, to development milestones, to reported high-volume manufacturing:
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- 2023: Intel said PowerVia was being prepared for both 20A and 18A. It also said it had decoupled PowerVia development from RibbonFET development to reduce integration risk. Intel reported more than 90% cell utilization on a product-like test chip; that was a company test result, not an independent benchmark.
- August 2024: Intel reported that Panther Lake client processors and Clearwater Forest server processors had powered on and booted from the fab. It said its 18A PDK 1.0 was available to customers, and that both products were on track to start production in 2025 as EDA and IP partners updated tools for final production designs. “On track” described the plan at that time, not proof that either product had entered production.
- Intel’s 2025 Form 10-K: Intel reported that 18A first entered high-volume manufacturing in late 2025. The filing names Core Ultra Series 3 as the first Intel product family manufactured on 18A.
Intel describes 18A as its most advanced leading-edge node and expects 18A and 18A-P to support multiple future generations of client and server CPUs. The filing reports manufacturing ramp activity in Oregon and Arizona: Oregon is the development and initial high-volume location, with Arizona Fab 52 ramping afterward.
What RibbonFET and PowerVia do
RibbonFET changes the transistor structure
RibbonFET is Intel’s gate-all-around transistor architecture. Instead of controlling a channel from several sides as in a multiple-fin FinFET, the gate surrounds the channel. That arrangement improves electrostatic control and can enable a smaller footprint than multiple-fin implementations.
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PowerVia moves power routing to the wafer’s back side
PowerVia is Intel’s backside power-delivery approach. Moving power routing to the back of the wafer leaves more front-side routing available for signals and can reduce interconnect congestion. Intel developed PowerVia separately from RibbonFET integration work to limit the risk of bringing two major changes together at once.
What Intel claims about 18A performance
Intel’s current process information reports the following 18A figures relative to Intel 3. Intel attributes them to a June 2025 VLSI Symposium paper:
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| Measure | Intel-reported 18A result versus Intel 3 |
|---|---|
| Performance at the same power | Up to 18% higher |
| Power at the same performance | 38% lower |
| Chip density | 30% improvement |
These are Intel’s process-level claims, not independent review results or guaranteed outcomes for every chip. Actual product performance depends on the design and operating conditions. They should not be conflated with the different, earlier 20A and 18A projections Intel made in 2022.
How 18A-P and 18A-PT fit in
Intel’s 18A family includes variants for different design and packaging needs:
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- 20 cores (8 P-cores plus 12 E-cores) and 28 threads. Discrete graphics required
- Up to 5.6 GHz with Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0 gives you smooth game play, high frame rates, and rapid responsiveness
- Compatible with Intel 600-series (with potential BIOS update) or 700-series chipset-based motherboards
- DDR4 and DDR5 platform support cuts your load times and gives you the space to run the most demanding games
- 18A-P: A performance-enhanced variant that Intel describes as design-rule-compatible with 18A.
- 18A-PT: A variant intended for advanced 3D integration using Foveros Direct.
Intel’s process information lists both as part of the 18A family. Their inclusion shows that the roadmap is not limited to a single unmodified 18A process.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Can outside companies make chips on Intel 18A?
Intel says 18A has production-ready EDA enablement, reference flows and IP, and is seeking government and commercial foundry customers. Its ecosystem work spans EDA, IP, design services, cloud and chiplet alliances. Those are signs of customer enablement and outreach; they do not, on their own, establish that a particular outside customer has committed a design or that a specific customer chip is in production.
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- 24 cores (8 P-cores plus 16 E-cores) and 32 threads. Integrated Intel UHD Graphics 770 included
- Leading max clock speed of up to 6.0 GHz gives you smoother game play, higher frame rates, and rapid responsiveness
- Compatible with Intel 600-series (with potential BIOS update) or 700-series chipset-based motherboards
- DDR4 and DDR5 platform support cuts your load times and gives you the space to run the most demanding games
Intel’s 2024 announcement that the 18A PDK 1.0 was available to customers was a design-enablement milestone. A process design kit and updated partner tools help customers prepare designs, but do not establish a customer’s tape-out, production order or shipping product.
What Intel’s next-node caveat means
Intel’s 2025 Form 10-K says development of 14A and successor nodes may be paused or discontinued if Intel cannot secure a significant external customer for 14A. That contingency concerns nodes beyond 18A and 18A-P; it is not an announcement that 18A production is ending. Intel also says products beyond 18A could be made internally or by an external foundry, including TSMC.
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