Intel Roars Back With Major Chip Launch After Stock Doubles in Brutal Turnaround

IntelINTC

spent years in the penalty box — now the stock is fighting back. After years of stumbles, the chipmaker surged by 100%+ over the past year — fueled by a new CEO, plus investments from NvidiaNVDA

, and the US government. Its CES announcement marked a “do-or-die moment,” which investors rewarded with a 6.5% stock pop on Wednesday.

• The “Panther Lake” release unveiled Intel’s most significant tech upgrade in roughly a decade — with the next-gen chip already in production for a Jan. 27 global rollout.
• Melius Research upgradedINTC
  to Buy, as others call the breakthrough proof it’s “back to being an executing machine” — finally clearing hurdles after years of credibility-crushing delays.

The execution test: This victory didn’t come cheap as CEO Lip-Bu Tan slashed 15% of Intel’s workforce, cut $10B in costs, and cancelled global factories to get here. If Panther Lake delivers, it could lure chip designers to Intel’s next-gen manufacturing nodes — the real prize for a foundry business. Still, 2026 is the proving ground, and while investors are betting Intel can stay in the ring, one strong round doesn’t win the fight — while a bad one could end it.