8+16/8+32 Meteor Lake has been completely cancelled, and 6+8 (or 2+8 or other configs) were supposed to be out last year. Intel 4 was supposed to debut with Ponte Vecchio as the pipecleaner in late 2020.
We’re getting RPL refresh because of issues with MTL and it’s tiled architecture.
If MTL were monolithic, we’d likely be getting MTL-S in the next few months.
1) Unannounced, unreleased product was “leaked” and later “cancelled”?
Or
2) shoddy leakers trying to cover up fake/mistaken leaks?
I tend to believe the more reasonable scenario #2. Even if you believe #1, things like that happen in AMD, Intel, Microsoft, and other companies all the time. It is a normal part of doing business. AMD/Intel has killed more product designs than we will ever know about. The reasons vary from profitability and volume to lack of execution resources, demand, or anything really.
The whole reason we are getting a Raptor Lake refresh is so Intel can stick to a yearly cadence. They are doing that so they can keep pressure on the competition while they get the house in order. It has worked the past couple years, and it will keep working. (Ask AMD how they will respond to Raptor Lake Refresh). OEMs also like having regular access to shiny new things.