Qualcomm says it will have chips to take on Apple silicon in nine months
What you need to know
- Apple might be about to face some new Apple silicon competition.
- Qualcomm says it is going to release new chips that can compete with Apple's M-series.
- They will be ready in nine months and feature in products in 2023.
Qualcomm says that it is going to release new chips next year that can keep up with M-series Apple chips like M1 Pro and M1 Max, and the M1 featured in devices like the MacBook Air with M1 and 13-inch MacBook Pro with M1.
Chief Technology Officer Dr. James Thompson spoke at Qualcomm's 2021 investor event, where he revealed the plan:
Qualcomm just promised an Apple M series competitor PC chipset in "nine months" or so. Acknowledge they have weakness in CPU and are using Nuvia acquisition to fix that. #qualcomm pic.twitter.com/CdBsHhKQKrQualcomm just promised an Apple M series competitor PC chipset in "nine months" or so. Acknowledge they have weakness in CPU and are using Nuvia acquisition to fix that. #qualcomm pic.twitter.com/CdBsHhKQKr— Sascha C-Band (@saschasegan) November 16, 2021November 16, 2021
Qualcomm supplies Apple with some hardware, providing modems for devices like the iPhone 13 and its other best iPhones.
Thompson said Qualcomm would release new "arm-compatible" SoC's designed by Nuvia, which it bought for $1.4 billion in 2021. The company boasts former Apple engineers who worked on Apple silicon, and in July Qualcomm chief executive Cristiano Amon said he thought Qualcomm could have the best chip on the market by next year. According to Thompson today, the new chips will be unveiled in about nine months, and be ready for devices in 2023.
It is expected by then that Apple will be on to the second generation of its own Apple silicon, with a new 'M2' chip expected next year that delivers even more improvements on the power-to-performance ratio that the M1 gave when it was unveiled in 2020. Apple announced the juiced-up M1 Pro and M1 Max in the new MacBook Pro (2021) last month.
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The 14-inch MacBook Pro (2021) comes with an M1 Pro or M1 Max SoC that's fast, secure, and available with the most memory and storage options. Did we mention that incredible display and that it comes with MagSafe?!
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Stephen Warwick has written about Apple for five years at iMore and previously elsewhere. He covers all of iMore's latest breaking news regarding all of Apple's products and services, both hardware and software. Stephen has interviewed industry experts in a range of fields including finance, litigation, security, and more. He also specializes in curating and reviewing audio hardware and has experience beyond journalism in sound engineering, production, and design. Before becoming a writer Stephen studied Ancient History at University and also worked at Apple for more than two years. Stephen is also a host on the iMore show, a weekly podcast recorded live that discusses the latest in breaking Apple news, as well as featuring fun trivia about all things Apple. Follow him on Twitter @stephenwarwick9