Intel Q3 revenue climbs 21% to $16.5 billion as data center sales jump 78%

Revenue and profit beat guidance

Intel said third-quarter revenue reached $16.5 billion, compared with $13.7 billion in the same quarter of 2025. GAAP earnings per share attributable to Intel were $0.60, down 33% from $0.90 a year earlier. Non-GAAP EPS was $0.52, up from $0.23, an increase of 126%.

GAAP gross margin was 43.0%, up 4.8 percentage points, and non-GAAP gross margin was 44.1%, up 4.1 points. GAAP operating margin rose to 15.3% from 5.0%, while non-GAAP operating margin reached 19.6%. GAAP net income attributable to Intel was $3.3 billion, down 18%. Non-GAAP net income was $2.8 billion, up 169%. The company generated $5.1 billion in cash from operations in the quarter.

CFO David Zinsner said revenue, gross margin and EPS exceeded guidance, "including our strongest data center revenue growth in 15 years."

Data center and foundry grow, client computing falls

The results split sharply by business unit. Data Center and AI (DCAI) revenue was $7.3 billion, up 78%. Intel Foundry posted $6.7 billion, up 58%. The Client Computing and Physical AI Group (CCPG), formerly the Client Computing Group, had revenue of $8.1 billion, down 5%. Total Intel Products revenue was $15.4 billion, up 22%. The All Other category, which no longer includes Altera after the September 2025 sale of 51% of its stock, fell 30% to $0.7 billion.

CEO Lip-Bu Tan pointed to "near-term headwinds across the PC industry" but said demand for Intel CPUs remains robust. He named unlocking additional supply for the Xeon family as the immediate priority, citing "extraordinary demand." Zinsner said Intel expects the PC slowdown to continue at least through the first half of next year, and that the company will keep making disciplined investments in capacity and working capital.

Partnerships, products and foundry milestones

Intel listed a series of business highlights. It completed a $23 billion public equity offering, which it said supports future growth while maintaining a strong balance sheet and investment-grade rating. It also announced plans to acquire Classiq, aiming to combine that company's quantum software synthesis platform with Intel's spin-qubit manufacturing and software expertise.

• A multiyear collaboration with Oracle to expand Intel Xeon-based computing on Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, including planned OCI X14 offerings powered by the next-generation server processor code-named Diamond Rapids.
• New technical details on the Intel GPU D-series, formerly code-named Crescent Island, and day-0 support for Meta's Muse Spark Open on the upcoming GPU D-series and Xeon platforms.
• The first Googlebook devices powered by Intel Core Ultra Series 3 processors, with premium devices from Acer, ASUS and Lenovo.
• A collaboration with AMD to bring x86 CPU optimizations for PyTorch together in oneDNN, and one with SAP on Physical AI.

On the foundry side, Intel released the Intel 14A 0.9 process design kit in October, announced collaborations with ASML on High-NA EUV readiness and with Lens Technology on advanced packaging, and completed the RAMP-C program. It also said it is working with Lam Research and Applied Materials on new facilities. Dean Jarnac was appointed executive vice president and chief sales officer.

Fourth-quarter outlook

Intel forecast fourth-quarter 2026 revenue of $15.0 billion to $16.0 billion, below the third-quarter figure. It expects GAAP EPS attributable to Intel of $0.10 and non-GAAP EPS of $0.25. Guided gross margin is 37.1% on a GAAP basis and 38.0% non-GAAP, with tax rates of 31% and 11% respectively. The company said the gross margin and EPS outlooks are based on the midpoint of the revenue range and that actual results may differ materially.

For customers and investors, the picture from Intel is one of strong server demand constrained by supply, set against a weaker PC market. How quickly the company can expand Xeon supply will shape whether the data center momentum carries forward.