@yuuki  discovered 12th generation Intel Core processors on the black market.  Uncertain quantities of the chips somehow always end up on the black market. 

Before each new product introduction, Intel distributes hundreds of engineering samples to system integrators, original equipment manufacturers, and motherboard manufacturers. Intel is clearly aware of the CPUs that are being sold before they are officially released, so this is hardly a secret. 

ES2, also known as second-generation engineering samples, are issued months before qualification and review samples are sent out to customers. Due to the fact that these samples frequently contain minor hardware defects and operate at lower frequencies than retail units, they do not accurately represent the final product. Nonetheless, they may be useful and fascinating to some people.

Many samples are available for purchase, albeit they often cost 4500 CNY (about 700 USD). The ultimate pricing of the Core i9-12900K is uncertain, although it is expected to be lower. However, because the series will be available for presale next month, we do not advocate purchasing this CPU at this time.

Intel Core i9-12900K samples available on the Chinese black market for 700 USD