1- Everything that begins to exist has a cause
2- The universe as a began to exist (or multiverse if you like that better)
3- Therefore the universe as a cause (outside of the property of matter, energy, space and time)
The only way to escape a primal cause is to claim that the universe has no beginning...which is the opposite of what are finding out more and more.
Why does the cause have to be intelligent? We have plenty of precedent for natural things having unintelligent, natural causes.