Intel overcame the early effects of COVID-19 and reported a strong first quarter of 2020, confirming that the company plans to add its next Tiger Lake processor near the middle of the year, as well as add manufacturing capacity.
Intel chief executive Bob Swan also praised his staff for remaining on duty as the coronavirus ramped up, promising $100 million in assistance to his workers including special recognition for those who reported to Intel’s facilities to keep the company running.
Intel reported net income of $5.7 billion, up 42 percent from a year ago, on revenue of $19.8 billion, up 23 percent from the same period. (Intel’s second-quarter outlook calls for revenue to drop slightly, to $18.5 billion.) Intel’s data-based businesses exploded, specifically its Xeon-centric Data Center Group, whose revenue rose 43 percent to $7 billion. The larger PC-specific Client Computing Group experienced slower growth, up 14 percent to $9.8 billion. Intel attributed the growth in DCG to strong demand for data center products and the cloud, though the company said it expects government and enterprise demand to fall off during the second half of the year.