Pathfinder was only announced in August 2022, so this is a very short life for the project.  However, if you think what has been happening to Intel lately, it is not that surprising.

Intel's fourth quarter was catastrophic and resulted in $661 million in losses. The outfit shuttered a number of its other operations. It has made staff redundant and is preparing to make more join the job queue soon. 

Intel has since updated its website with a statement that reads:

“We regret to inform you that Intel is discontinuing the Intel Pathfinder for RISC-V program effective immediately. Since Intel will not be providing any additional releases or bug fixes, we encourage you to promptly transition to third-party RISC-V* software tools that best meet your development needs.”

The programme was designed to help its users develop RISC-V chips using industry-standard toolchains and as such had been supported by a number of RISC-V companies. It was split into a Professional Edition, and a more stripped back Starter Edition for hobbyists looking to give it a go.

The bloke who was in charge of RISC-V ventures at Chipzilla Vijay Krishnan has moved on to a new role as general manager for new initiatives, indicating that Intel is turning its back on its RISC-V operations for now.