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Intel Previews Graphics Cards With New Concept Image

The design is called "Dragon scale" and features a silver metal aesthetic. Intel previewed the rendering with the goal of gathering input from gamers, developers and PC enthusiasts during a company-sponsored event at GDC.

 & Michael Kan Principal Reporter

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Here's what Intel's upcoming graphics cards might look like. At GDC, the company briefly showed a concept rendering, depicting the outer casing for an Intel-made discrete GPU.

The design is called "Dragon scale" and features a silver metal aesthetic. Of course, the company's final product may look very different from the concept image. Intel decided to preview the rendering with the goal of gathering input from gamers, developers and PC enthusiasts during an Intel-sponsored event at GDC.

Intel Graphics Card Shroud

The chipmaker is playing around with different casing materials and colors for its discrete GPUs, and may tease other renderings in the future, Chris Hook, marketing director for the company's Visual Technologies, told PCMag. One intention with this particular rendering was to produce a design different from other graphics cards on the market.

The concept image was also dropped when Intel has been trying to build up hype for the company's dedicated graphics cards, which are slated to launch in 2020. To generate support, the company has been inviting input from gamers and PC enthusiasts both online and offline.

Intel CEO Bob Swan at GDC

At GDC, the company held its first-ever community gathering for its graphics card business. Unfortunately, no new information was offered about the technical specs for the GPUs or what might they might cost. But the event did have a surprise guest: Intel's CEO Bob Swan. He made a brief speech, in which he admitted he wasn't a gamer.

"But look, what I do know — even though I'm not a gamer— is I know how important gamers are to Intel," he said. "I am here to simply listen, to learn, and to kind of start my own journey with this community about how we can get better to serve and work with you."

Last August, Intel also teased what the company's graphics cards might look like with a video. However, the preview only showed the card's silhouette.

About Our Expert

Michael Kan

Michael Kan

Principal Reporter

My Experience

I've been a journalist for over 15 years. I got my start as a schools and cities reporter in Kansas City and joined PCMag in 2017, where I cover satellite internet services, cybersecurity, PC hardware, and more. I'm currently based in San Francisco, but previously spent over five years in China, covering the country's technology sector.

Since 2020, I've covered the launch and explosive growth of SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet service, writing 600+ stories on availability and feature launches, but also the regulatory battles over the expansion of satellite constellations, fights with rival providers like AST SpaceMobile and Amazon, and the effort to expand into satellite-based mobile service. I've combed through FCC filings for the latest news and driven to remote corners of California to test Starlink's cellular service.

I also cover cyber threats, from ransomware gangs to the emergence of AI-based malware. In 2024 and 2025, the FTC forced Avast to pay consumers $16.5 million for secretly harvesting and selling their personal information to third-party clients, as revealed in my joint investigation with Motherboard.

I also cover the PC graphics card market. Pandemic-era shortages led me to camp out in front of a Best Buy to get an RTX 3000. I'm now following how the AI-driven memory shortage is impacting the entire consumer electronics market. I'm always eager to learn more, so please jump in the comments with feedback and send me tips.

The Best Tech I've Had:

  • My first video game console: a Nintendo Famicom
  • I loved my Sega Saturn despite PlayStation's popularity.
  • The iPod Video I received as a gift in college
  • Xbox 360 FTW
  • The Galaxy Nexus was the first smartphone I was proud to own.
  • The PC desktop I built in 2013, which still works to this day.

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