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AMD CEO Lisa Su spoke to reporters in a question-and-answer session following a keynote address at CES 2021 on Tuesday, answering a variety of questions, including a request for comment on Apple’s first foray into the desktop processor space.
Speaking to the press via conference call, Su answered a series of questions regarding AMD’s upcoming projects, the x86 platform, and new developments in a highly competitive semiconductor market.
Dr Ian Cutress from AnandTech focused on the emergence of ARM processor designs. According to Cutress, ARM models are expected to dramatically improve compute performance in the years to come and may start to encroach on territory long held by x86 makers like AMD and Intel. ARM silicon is typically used in specialty deployments such as servers, but chip designs are now starting to appear in consumer products.
Apple, for example, introduced the M1 chip in its late-2020 13-inch MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, and Mac mini models. The tech giant predicts that its entire line of Mac computers will run on custom ARM chips. within two years. This presents an immediate loss of revenue for current CPU partner Intel, but also creates headwinds for the broader x86 market.
Su was asked about the impact of M1 on AMD’s relationship with Apple.
“M1 is more about the amount of processing and innovation in the market. It’s an opportunity to innovate more, both in hardware and software, and it goes beyond the ISA,” said Su. “From our perspective, there is still innovation in the PC space – we have a lot of choice and people can use the same processors in many different environments. We expect to see more specialization over the next two years, and this allows for more differentiation. But Apple continues to work with us as a graphics partner, and we work with them. “
Apple is relying on AMD’s Radeon graphics cards to power high-end devices like MacBook Pro, iMac, and Mac Pro, but that could change with a move to in-house solutions. The M1 Macs incorporate Tile Based Deferred Rendering (TBDR) graphics cores on a system-on-chip design similar to the A-series processors used on iPhone and iPad.
While Apple is content to stick with integrated graphics for the initial wave of Mac M1, it’s possible the company will be working on a dedicated GPU to better serve high-performance machines.
Apple’s transition to ARM appears to be putting pressure on incumbents. On Monday, Intel detailed its upcoming Alder Lake chip series, which apparently takes a page from the Apple Silicon strategy book by expanding the use cases from mobile to the office.
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