Intel Arc Battlemage is not the end as Arc Celestial and Arc Druid desktop GPUs are reportedly still under development
Intel is finally launching the successor to Arc Alchemist desktop GPUs with the Arc Battlemage cards. The first board of the Arc Battlemage series, the Intel Arc B580, has repeatedly leaked online, and we now have pictures, specs, and pricing of the first Arc B580 AIB models.
However, the performance of the Arc B580 isn’t anything extraordinary, as the GPU is likely to compete with the RTX 4060 and the RTX 4060 Ti at a price point of around $250. At $250, if the Arc B580 can compete or beat the RTX 4060 Ti, it could be a popular card among budget buyers. According to a previous leak by Moore’s Law Is Dead, the future of Intel’s discrete desktop GPUs hinges on the success of the Arc Battlemage. So, if Arc Battlemage fails to make any impact, MLID claims that Intel could cancel the only Arc Celestial die currently under development.
That said, leaker JayKihn has now revealed on X that Intel is continuing to develop Arc Celestial dGPU for desktops.
Intel Arc Celestial and Arc Druid for desktops
Replying to a comment on X which claimed that the Arc Battlemage B580 is the last Intel GPU for desktops, JayKihn suggests that the Arc Celestial and Arc Druid “are as planned as ever”. While JayKihn hasn’t mentioned this specifically, the statement seems to confirm that Intel will follow up Arc Battlemage with Arc Celestial and later release Arc Druid regardless of the success of the Arc Battlemage cards.
JayKihn’s reply also points to the original poster mixing up “Intel’s commitment to laptop dGPUs and desktop dGPUs”. Intel has reportedly canceled all plans to launch discrete laptop Battlemage cards, and it appears Arc Celestial and Arc Druid will follow the same path.
Intel Arc Celestial specs and release date
We don’t have much to share regarding Arc Celestial’s specs, performance target, and release date. We know even less about Arc Druid. What we do now, however, is that the mobile Panther Lake P, U, and H series uses Intel’s 3 nm Xe3 graphics architecture for the iGPU tile.
Since Arc Celestial also relies on the Xe3 architecture, chances are that we might see desktop Arc Celestial cards in 2025/early 2026, the same year as Panther Lake CPUs. The 2026 Arc Celestial release date is not new, as we have already heard about the date a while back.
All in all, the Arc Battlemage GPUs are seemingly not the end for Intel’s desktop GPU division and we are in for more Arc GPUs in the future. This is encouraging news, since the PC dGPU space needs more competition. Then again, we can’t be sure of Intel’s plans, as the company is going through a rather tumultuous period.
Source(s)
Jaykihn on X, Teaser image: Intel, Jeremy Thomas on Unsplash, edited
