Intel (INTC) has launched a new chip for tablet computers, as the world's most powerful semiconductor company aims to become a contender in the market for mobile chips.

Intel's chips are in 80 percent of laptops and desktop PCs, but the Santa Clara company has had less success getting its chips into smaller devices such as cellphones and tablets.

Known for pushing the processing speeds of its chips to the limit, energy efficiency has now become critical for Intel as gadgets and their batteries get smaller, testing the limits of engineering in a different way. And with more consumers starting to opt to buy tablets instead of upgrading their PCs, Intel is looking to diversify its revenue sources.

Intel's chips have been maligned as too power-hungry for the smallest of mobile devices, a criticism Intel is hoping its new chips address. Intel is trying to elbow in to a mobile market dominated by lower-power processors from companies such as Qualcomm and Texas Instruments. Apple (AAPL) designs its own chip for the iPad.