Intel wants to turn cars into the next gaming PC

Intel has introduced a new chip with a heavy GPU focus, exclusively for cars at its AI Cockpit Innovation Experience event in Shenzhen.

As car manufacturers push to bring more entertainment options, Intel is boarding the train.

The chip is apparently designed to bring “AAA” gaming to vehicles. Named the A760A, Intel says it wants it not only to run “high-demand AAA gaming titles”, but also “AI PC rich applications for smart mobile working.”

Intel, CES

It wouldn’t be a full graphics card in the car, however. This is like Intel building an incredibly large Steam Deck competitor, with the GPU included inside the overall chip.

Intel said that the chip will be able to provide voice, gesture, and camera features to aid in controlling games. 

Team Blue said it plans for its new “cockpit user interface” to support “seven high-definition screens” that will be “rendering 3D graphics and six-in vehicle cameras and interactive features.”

On stage, Intel notes that the chip could support eight screens at 4K.

Of course, Intel had something to add about AI. During the presentation, the Vice President and General Manager of Intel Automotive, Jack Weast, said that users wouldn’t need to use the cloud for AI tasks. Instead, it would use the “compute power inside the chip” which will be found in your car.

Weast follows this up by saying that Intel’s chip will provide “graphical experiences… that you have never imagined before inside a car.”

Epic and Intel partner up to bring Unreal Engine to cars

Part of this includes a partnership with Epic Games. The Fortnite developer will bring its Unreal Engine to the chip. It’s a big move and should give the hardware the software support it’ll need. 

Intel hasn’t yet revealed any manufacturers who’ve opted to use the card. It was announced that cars with the chip will launch in 2025. However, the car world is currently in software hell.

Apple recently unveiled its CarPlay update, with the Cupertino company wanting full control over the vehicle. Companies like GM have pushed back against this, opting to make their own.

Tesla has made the biggest jumps for in-car entertainment. The large panel at the front can be loaded up with apps. BMW has AirConsole, which allows phones to be used as controllers.

So far, most experiences have been mobile games repurposed for the car. Intel appears to be aiming to do what Valve did with handheld PCs or what Apple has done with the iPhone 15 Pro. 

The flagship model now has access to a limited selection of AAA games, with Assassin’s Creed and Resident Evil already released.

Intel’s Arc GPUs and the new line of chips for mobile platforms – seen in the MSI Claw – have been slammed for poor performance. Team Blue regularly updates its cards’ drivers with more support as time goes on, but it still lags behind.

The company is also currently facing enormous issues with its 13th and 14th generation of PC processors. It recently had to extend warranties by up to two years, as the hardware keeps failing due to a bug.

Intel has confirmed that there’s not much they can do for anything damaged. The company has deployed a fix but is still dogged by the issue.