Intel Nova Lake leaks reveal high-performance benchmarks and new naming scheme

Leaked benchmark data and technical specifications for Intel’s upcoming Nova Lake desktop processors suggest a significant performance leap and a shift in branding. Early engineering samples of the Core Ultra 9 4950K, tested on an unreleased Z990 chipset with the LGA1954 socket, reportedly achieved CPU-Z scores exceeding 20,000 in multi-core tests. This performance allegedly surpasses AMD’s flagship Ryzen 9 9950X3D2 by approximately 16%.

The Nova Lake architecture features a 28-core configuration consisting of 8 P-cores (Coyote Cove), 16 E-cores (Arctic Wolf), and 4 low-power E-cores (LPE-Core). A notable technical feature is the Big Last-Level Cache (bLLC) technology, which could provide up to 144 MB of L3 cache to compete with AMD’s 3D V-Cache. High-end single-tile configurations are expected to have a power limit (PL1/PL2) of approximately 296W.

Intel is also expected to transition from three-digit to four-digit model numbering, moving toward a Core Ultra 4000 series. While the 28-core model is a flagship for the single-tile lineup, roadmap leaks suggest Intel may eventually release even more ambitious 52-core dual-tile configurations by mid-2027.