Intel confirms Arc Alchemist desktop GPU is China exclusive at launch

Intel has completely screwed the launch of its Arc GPU, with multiple delays, a whimpered appearance on select notebooks in Arc mobile GPU form, and now Intel has absolutely confirmed Arc desktop GPUs will be a China exclusive at launch. Okay.

2

It was only a few hours ago that I wrote a news article that talked about Intel delaying the launch of its desktop-focused Arc Alchemist GPU, which Igor from Igor's Lab reported from his sources. But now... now this is from the horse's mouth -- and that horse's mouth... is Intel -- delaying Arc Alchemist GPUs on desktop.

Not only that, but Intel Arc Alchemist GPUs on the desktop will be exclusive to China... yeah, exclusive to China at launch. This is a mess and should've been explained to the press in detail, months ago. Nope. Instead, it comes out in a tiny little story today, which I hope truly blows up. I do love that Intel uses a picture that says: "Intel Arc, a new player has entered the game"... except that player hasn't entered the game, and when it does it'll be exclusive to China for god knows how long.

Lisa Pearce, Vice President and General Manager for the Visual Compute Group at Intel, provided an update on the official Intel website. Question #2: When are the desktop cards with Intel Arc graphics coming?

• Read more: Intel Arc Alchemist delayed AGAIN, drivers blamed: mid-summer release
• Read more: Intel Arc Alchemist desktop GPUs reportedly delayed, disappointment
• Read more: Sigh: Intel delays Arc A-Series GPUs for laptops, don't be surprised
• Read more: Intel GPU launch is a mess, partners aren't happy with mismanagement

Pearce said: "Unlike notebook designs, desktop systems have a vast set of combinations, including memory, motherboards, and CPUs. To initially limit some of this variation, we will launch working with system builders and OEMs with specific configurations.

"We will release our entry-level Intel Arc A-series products for desktops (A3) first in China through system builders and OEMs in Q2. Etail and retail component sales will follow shortly in China as well. Proximity to board components and strong demand for entry-level discrete products makes this a natural place to start. Our next step will be to scale these products globally".

"Roll-out of Intel Arc A5 and A7 desktop cards will start worldwide with OEMs and system integrators later this summer, followed by component sales in worldwide channels. This staggered approach gives us confidence at each step that we can effectively serve our customer base".