Qualcomm has set its sights on the server CPU market, as the San Diego chipmaker has now hired Intel’s former Xeon chief architect, fueling the competition in this segment.
Qualcomm’s Server CPUs Might Feature The ARM Architecture Based On Nuvia Cores, Coming After x86’s Dominant Market Share
It seems like Qualcomm has now decided to expand into a new segment of the CPU markets after having a relatively decent start with its mobile “Snapdragon X Elite” SoCs. The San Diego chipmaker has revealed intentions to aggressively look into new business opportunities in the past as well, and server CPUs are what the company will target next. In light of this, Qualcomm has reportedly hired Intel’s Chief Architect for Xeon CPUs, Sailesh Kottapalli, who will now be the Senior Vice President at his new workplace and will be responsible for Qualcomm’s next big project.
Interestingly, in a recent job listing, Qualcomm has been looking for a “Server SoC Security Architect,” claiming that the job will be a part of the firm’s data center team, validating that the San Diego chipmaker is working in this particular segment. Here’s the more important part of the job listing, revealing what we can expect from Qualcomm’s server CPUs:
Our focus is on developing reference platforms based on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon SoC, delivering a comprehensive solution that includes hardware, software, reference designs, user guides, SDKs, and more.
With Qualcomm formally hiring a key part of Intel’s Xeon team, the firm is certainly determined to compete in this segment, coming right after the mainstream competitors. In terms of what Qualcomm’s server CPUs could look like, they will employ Nuvia’s HPC-specific cores, as disclosed last year in a legal filing. And given that Nuvia x Qualcomm initially intended to push out server CPUs before the Snapdragon X Elite series, it won’t be wrong to say that development is already in progress,
Another interesting take on Qualcomm’s server CPU ambitions is that this might be one of the first ARM-based mainstream solutions for the data center markets, given that x86 has dominated with AMD and Intel options. There are projects such as Amazon’s Graviton and Ampere Computing’s processors, but they haven’t seen the market spotlight for now. Considering how Qualcomm has successfully executed “Windows on ARM” successfully, we can see the firm doing the same with its upcoming server CPUs.
Qualcomm has already pushed out server CPUs in the past, under its “Centriq” lineup back in 2016, and while the CPUs gained immense market spotlight, the San Diego chipmaker failed to deliver on expectations, given the limited software support with ARM-based solutions, and the x86 dominance at that time, so this is something Qualcomm has to nail perfectly in order to succeed in this segment.
News Source: CRN