Apple Looking into Building Its Own Chips

By John Biggs

Not content at owning 100% of the world's brand awareness, Apple is looking into building its own chipset and has even hired a team to work on "multifunction" mobile chips. In the cellphone world, a chip is a chip.

Most of them are ARM-based but there are a few outliers. Most importantly, however, each has a similar power profile. Therefore, by controlling the entire chip themselves, Apple can handle its own graphics, video, and audio output as well optimize for power control - a huge concern with devices like the iPhone.

Quoth the WSJ:

In one sign of the new focus, Apple recently hired Raja Koduri, who was formerly the chief technology officer of the graphics products group at chip maker Advanced Micro Devices Inc. Mr. Koduri started at Apple this week, following in the footsteps of Bob Drebin, who had held the same title at AMD and is also now working for Apple. Online job postings from Apple describe dozens of chip-related positions it is trying to fill, some with partial descriptions like “testing the functional correctness of Apple developed silicon.”

This is Apple’s MO: build an all-star team in stealth mode and launch their internal product to much rejoicing. As expected, Apple declined to comment.

Original post

Comments

[Tom B]

We've all read the headlines as well.

My question: where is Intel going to be in 5 years? More low margin chips (as in netbooks and Apple's hypothesized new "ARM") could be bad for Intel's earnings growth.

2009 Apr 30 09:17 AM

[Warnin4U]

Apple continues to prove that vision coupled with in house development can result in market dominance. Look at the competition (Microsoft). They have the uncontested reputation of providing the world with product that is broken when new. If Apple really cared about dominating the PC market they would license their OS. Can you imagine anyone buying a Microsoft product if an Apple OS was available for a $20 premium. Within 2 years no one would be using MS software.

2009 Apr 30 10:07 AM

[mollytjm]

Apple's profit hasn't been software...it's the devices. They make a huge profit on everything they make and to use the best OS, you need a Mac. It looks like Apple is going for a completely integrated system that runs everything that's tech for your home and office (and on the go, as well), including, the T.V.
Making their own chips makes sense in this game plan. This is one company that knows how to make $$$ on manufacturing.
They see their competition as not only operating systems, but actual physical hardware..Dell, HP, Sony, etc. If they license their OS, then in effect they lose their trump card... the physical product.

2009 Apr 30 10:32 AM

[brewer]

Perhaps Apple will buy another hardware manufacturer to increase their product offerings, or license ONE other vendor, HP would be a good choice. So far, they have put a much greater hurt on board pluggers (all the PC manufacturers do little more than any of us could do ourselves going to Fry's and buying parts and snapping them together) than they have to Microsoft.

I actually think Apple likes to have Microsoft around to point to and say, 'This is your alternative'. What amazes me is that there are still so many people who think it's a viable alternative. (Just to stubborn to admit they are wrong.)

The OS is where it's at in computer market domination. But on a Mac, Windows is now just a program, not the OS at all.

2009 Apr 30 11:27 AM

[dragon10]

apple alwaz has there chips )spaci one= but new all the triger 9TIGER=

2009 Apr 30 12:37 PM