Intel CEO says the company is committed to GPUs as it hires a new Chief GPU Architect

Even though it looks like Intel's highly anticipated Arc B770 graphics card for PC gaming has effectively been canceled, Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan has confirmed that the company isn't backing out of the GPU market anytime soon. In fact, the company has hired a new Chief GPU Architect, and the segment is "very important" to Team Blue.

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During the company's recent AI Summit, Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan was asked the straightforward question, 'Does Intel build GPUs in the future?' The answer was also a simple 'Yes,' with Lip-Bu Tan adding that they've hired a new Chief GPU Architect.

"I'm very delighted he joined, and it took some persuasion," Lip-Bu Tan said. "I told him that it's not just CPUs, GPUs are also very important for different application workloads. And you have to really optimize." According to Reuters, the new GPU lead at Intel is former Qualcomm executive Eric Demmers, and the focus will be on data centers.

This focus makes sense in light of the recent rumor that the Intel Arc B770 has been shelved in favor of a workstation- and AI-focused Intel Arc Pro B70 model, and the gradual consumer shift toward integrated Arc graphics in new APUs like the Panther Lake-powered Core Ultra 300 Series.

That said, even with a focus on AI, that doesn't rule out Intel continuing to develop and release gaming GPUs, and the company's gaming-focused Arc graphics architecture has continued to evolve and improve over the years. And even though Intel's Arc series of desktop graphics cards hasn't managed to make a dent in NVIDIA's dominance in the discrete GPU market, the recent shelving of the Arc B770 probably has more to do with the ongoing memory crisis affecting all corners of the consumer tech market.