- Arm could be gearing up to make its own CPUs, competing with its own customers
- Report says Arm is quietly poaching talent from its own partners
- SoftBank’s $6.5 billion Ampere buyout could be the push Arm needs
Arm has built a solid business designing microprocessor architectures, such as ARMv9, and licensing the IP to big players like Apple, Qualcomm, Samsung, Nvidia, AMD, and AWS – but what it doesn’t do is make and sell its own chips, although this could be about to change.
It has long been rumored Arm is considering making its own silicon, and it now appears the British firm is finally taking steps in that direction.
Arm’s Japanese owner, SoftBank, is set to acquire Ampere Computing, Arm’s only independent server chip vendor, for $6.5 billion, a move which could help Arm expand its footprint in the competitive data center and AI markets and pave the way for the company to build its own chips, but it’s a risky strategy. This quest for higher profits could put it in competition with some of its larger customers, including Qualcomm and AMD.
Looking to poach staff
Much of Arm’s success stems from the fact that its partners view it as a neutral force in the industry, rather than a competitor. If Arm begins to build its own silicon, that perception will change – and, as a Reuters report citing anonymous sources and a reviewed document suggests, it could upend the industry. Companies that license Arm’s IP will have to consider whether they want to continue doing business with a direct competitor. RISC-V could really benefit here.
According to the report, Arm is actively seeking to recruit staff from its own customers, as well as competing with some of them for deals as it moves towards the goal of selling its own CPUs.
The document that Reuters reviewed reportedly states in November 2024, a recruiter working for Arm sent a message to an unnamed executive at an unnamed Arm client, seeking to hire employees to assist with its “transformation from solely designing processor architecture (IP) to also selling its own silicon, with a focus on driving AI enablement in the data center” and on other devices.
Two industry sources also told Reuters Arm recruiters have been reaching out to other chip designers in Silicon Valley for the same purpose.
Arm’s ambitions may extend further still. According to a research note published by J.P. Morgan analyst Harlan Sur, Broadcom has won a contract from Arm and SoftBank to develop a custom-built AI chip for data centers, potentially bringing Arm into competition with Nvidia.
A spokesperson for Arm declined to comment on the Reuters report.
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