Qualcomm and Samsung in the field of Apple chips are in the bureau
In the chip industry, many people are speculating that Apple has a "king of the bomb" — a dominant force that has shaped the landscape. Companies like Qualcomm and Samsung have also been positioning themselves around Apple, but it's clear that Apple has taken a significant lead. The company was among the first to adopt 64-bit ARM architecture, and this move not only gave it a performance edge but also pushed the entire industry toward 64-bit computing.
In the smartphone sector, Apple’s 64-bit chips, from the instruction set to micro-architecture, are considered nearly unbeatable globally. Even industry giants like Samsung and Qualcomm find it hard to challenge Apple’s dominance in this area.
However, at MWC 2018, we saw Samsung and Qualcomm launching mobile processors based on their own micro-architectures. According to GeekBench test results, these chips were only about 20% behind Apple’s A11 chip from the previous year. This shows that self-developed architectures can deliver strong results, though the performance gap remains noticeable. It’s unlikely this will change significantly in the near future.
Huawei also invested early in micro-architecture research but didn’t announce any progress at MWC 2018. Its latest Kirin 970 still uses the standard ARM public architecture, and its overall performance is roughly half that of the A11. Analysts believe Huawei may launch its own micro-architecture chips alongside high-end devices later this year, with potential AI improvements aimed at competing with Qualcomm, Samsung, and even Apple in the premium smartphone market.
Companies like MediaTek, Unisoc, and Qihoo 360 focus more on performance-to-price ratios and generally don’t pursue custom micro-architectures. They rely on publicly available ARM designs, which are reliable but lack the cutting-edge innovation seen in Apple’s chips. As a result, a performance gap with Apple is expected, but since their target markets aren’t high-end, there’s no need to expect dramatic changes.
Apple’s long-term investment in the ARM ecosystem has paid off, and its competitive advantage is likely to last for years. Unlike other chip manufacturers, Apple continues to invest heavily in R&D, ensuring its lead in the future.
The story begins with an old narrative that affects both the mobile and semiconductor industries. Looking back, it’s clear that Apple’s strategic moves have reshaped the ARM architecture landscape.
Behind the scenes, Apple has built a solid foundation in the semiconductor space. Industry insiders with experience at major processor companies reveal that Apple’s chip strategy extends even to IP suppliers like ARM.
So, how has Apple influenced ARM, the most upstream player in the chip industry? It starts with ARM’s initial reluctance to embrace 64-bit architecture.
ARM stuck with 32-bit for a long time, claiming it was sufficient for high-end Cortex-A chips. But as applications became more complex, the 4GB memory limit of 32-bit became a bottleneck. In the server market, ARM’s lack of 64-bit support made it almost irrelevant.
By 2012, ARM finally introduced 64-bit architecture — 13 years after x86. This wasn’t entirely of ARM’s own making. Apple had been pushing for it for years, aiming to maintain its performance edge and expand into notebooks and PCs, challenging x86.
Apple contributed 26 64-bit instructions to ARM, and by 2012, ARM v8.0a used 18 of them. The remaining 8 were added in v8.1a the following year.
This explains why Apple’s A-series chips consistently outperform competitors. While ARM makes its 64-bit architecture publicly available, Apple’s deep expertise in chip design gives it a unique advantage.
Even after adopting the public version of 64-bit ARM, other manufacturers struggled to catch up. They realized that sticking to the standard would never close the gap with Apple, so they started developing their own micro-architectures.
Today, Apple still leads in micro-architecture efficiency, approaching x86 levels. Its long-term planning in 64-bit architecture has had lasting effects on the industry.
After being acquired by SoftBank, ARM expanded into IoT and actively pursued the server market, exploring new possibilities beyond what Apple initially proposed.
Meanwhile, mobile chip suppliers once sidelined by Apple have found their own paths. Simply following the public version won’t help them catch up, so they’re investing in custom micro-architectures to narrow the gap.
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