Intel's shares surged 15 percent in after-hours trading after it posted first-quarter results that beat market expectations and issued a strong second-quarter outlook.

CNBC reported on Wednesday that Intel showed signs of a revenue rebound across businesses that had been struggling.

The key was a recovery in revenue. Intel's first-quarter revenue rose 7.2 percent from a year earlier to $13.58 billion, topping a forecast of $12.42 billion. Given that it posted revenue declines in 5 of the past 7 quarters, it was seen as a sign the trend is changing. Adjusted earnings per share also significantly exceeded a market estimate of $0.01.

Second-quarter guidance also topped expectations. Intel forecast second-quarter revenue of $13.8 billion to $14.8 billion and adjusted earnings per share of $0.20. That exceeded market forecasts of $13.07 billion in revenue and $0.09 in earnings per share.

Data centers drove the growth. Revenue in the segment rose 22 percent to $5.1 billion. It was assessed as a meaningful result as demand for central processing units recovered amid growing demand for artificial intelligence.

The foundry business also grew. Related revenue rose 16 percent from a year earlier to $5.4 billion. However, a large portion of that comes from producing Intel's own chips rather than for external customers. Intel maintains an integrated device manufacturer structure that handles both design and production, distinguishing it from most chip companies that outsource manufacturing to TSMC.

Product launches also supported the improved results. Intel launched its "Core Ultra Series 3" for PCs in January and introduced its "Xeon 6+" processor for data centers in March. Google later decided to use multiple generations of Intel CPUs to handle AI workloads at its data centers. The latest PC and data-center chips are being produced on an 18A process at a new plant in Arizona.

Profitability remains a challenge. Intel posted a net loss of $4.28 billion, or $0.73 per share, widening from a loss of $887 million, or $0.19 per share, a year earlier. Despite the revenue rebound, it has not fully escaped a loss-making structure.

The share rise has been steep. Intel shares have risen more than 80 percent this year through the close on Wednesday. The upward trend has continued after an 84 percent surge in 2025. U.S. government policy to support the chip industry and investments by Nvidia and SoftBank continued, but Intel lagged AMD and Nvidia in the early phase of AI and failed to build clear momentum.

In this context, changes in the CPU market are emerging as an important opportunity for Intel. As agent-based tasks spread, the possibility has been raised that CPU demand could rise again as the market moves away from a GPU-centered structure that has dominated AI computing. This trend is seen as reflected in Intel's decision to buy back the 49 percent stake in an Irish chip plant that it had recently sold to Apollo Global Management for $14 billion.

Future tasks are also clear. Intel's 18A process is assessed as technologically similar to TSMC's 2-nanometre process, but its major customers are effectively limited to the company itself. The next step is to secure external orders by persuading customers that have long used TSMC. Delays repeated during past process transitions and yield issues for some 18A wafers also remain a burden.