After years of work, Microsoft is still trying to make its own Apple Silicon-like chip
A report pointing to job listings claims that Microsoft wants to take on Apple Silicon more directly -- but the company has been hiring ARM engineers for a decade.
An ARM chip
Apple's introduction of its M-series chips in Mac and MacBook models brought with it a massive performance increase and other benefits. Keen to catch up on its main rival, Microsoft could be preparing for Windows 12 to be a very ARM-focused effort.
In job postings on the Microsoft website allegedly seen by Windows Latest before removal, Microsoft wanted to hire new staff in key positions relating to chip production. This included positions covering custom silicon accelerators, System on Chips, and creating high-performance, high-bandwidth designs.
One listing for the "Microsoft Silicon Team" apparently wanted a Principal SoC Silicon Architect who would be "responsible for building complex, state-of-the-art SOCs using leading silicon technology nodes." Another job listing wants a "Senior Silicon Power Integrity CAD Manager."
The jobs were supposedly posted to the end of April, with most mentioned as being part of the "Microsoft Silicon Team," which is a group of engineers that internally develops silicon components. While this has previously involved designs for Azure, Xbox, Surface, and HoloLens, it is likely that the team will also work on ARM-based processors, especially if Microsoft treads down the self-designed chip route.
It is thought that Windows 12 is part of Microsoft's Windows Core project, which will make a modular version of Windows to work across multiple form factors. The hiring of ARM-focused engineers indicates a greater push to make Windows 12 work as well as possible on ARM chips, furthering the prospect of Microsoft using its own silicon.
It has also prepared developers for a more ARM-based future, with the Windows Dev Kit 2023 being a Mac mini-like compact PC running ARM, which Microsoft sells for $600. While not using a Microsoft-designed chip, the kit formerly known as "Project Volterra" does use the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 compute platform for its processing.
On the software side, it has created a Windows 11 version for ARM systems, and though there's no official support for Apple Silicon systems to run it directly, there are ways around Microsoft's limitations.
Read on AppleInsider
An ARM chip
Apple's introduction of its M-series chips in Mac and MacBook models brought with it a massive performance increase and other benefits. Keen to catch up on its main rival, Microsoft could be preparing for Windows 12 to be a very ARM-focused effort.
In job postings on the Microsoft website allegedly seen by Windows Latest before removal, Microsoft wanted to hire new staff in key positions relating to chip production. This included positions covering custom silicon accelerators, System on Chips, and creating high-performance, high-bandwidth designs.
One listing for the "Microsoft Silicon Team" apparently wanted a Principal SoC Silicon Architect who would be "responsible for building complex, state-of-the-art SOCs using leading silicon technology nodes." Another job listing wants a "Senior Silicon Power Integrity CAD Manager."
The jobs were supposedly posted to the end of April, with most mentioned as being part of the "Microsoft Silicon Team," which is a group of engineers that internally develops silicon components. While this has previously involved designs for Azure, Xbox, Surface, and HoloLens, it is likely that the team will also work on ARM-based processors, especially if Microsoft treads down the self-designed chip route.
It is thought that Windows 12 is part of Microsoft's Windows Core project, which will make a modular version of Windows to work across multiple form factors. The hiring of ARM-focused engineers indicates a greater push to make Windows 12 work as well as possible on ARM chips, furthering the prospect of Microsoft using its own silicon.
Microsoft has been engineering ARM for a decade
While the job postings point to a bigger effort to take on Apple Silicon, Microsoft is certainly no stranger to ARM, as it has used such chips in some Surface releases over the years. It has also gradually hired engineers in the field to increase its capabilities for over a decade.It has also prepared developers for a more ARM-based future, with the Windows Dev Kit 2023 being a Mac mini-like compact PC running ARM, which Microsoft sells for $600. While not using a Microsoft-designed chip, the kit formerly known as "Project Volterra" does use the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 compute platform for its processing.
On the software side, it has created a Windows 11 version for ARM systems, and though there's no official support for Apple Silicon systems to run it directly, there are ways around Microsoft's limitations.
Read on AppleInsider
Comments
Furthermore with Apple's cadence of upgrades I doubt that Microsoft or Intel will catch them anytime soon.
They are a software company. Their name is not MicroHard.
Going into SOC development requires lots of $$$$ and a long time. Apple does that sort of long-term investment. It remains to be seen if MS can do the same.
I guess I forgot to add the /s to my comment. They have made some very good hardware.
(strangely, my comment is not visible outside of the forum. It's just blank)
What matters is the fabrication process and what yield-cost trade-off Microsoft goes with.
Probably better just to figure out how large of a die size you can afford on a given process, what your power and performance goals are, and then start modding a standard ARM design to try and achieve those goals.
For reasons of national security, I think it's necessary to try and save Intel. But I think "we" (meaning, I guess, American citizens and policy makers) need to think long and hard about how to try and reduce the chances of something like this from happening again. Intel was a national treasure and these a-holes absolutely plundered it and put their country at risk. I know there are some financial institutions that have been designated as being too important to the financial system to fail, meaning they both get extra protection but also extra oversight/regulation. Maybe we need a similar national security designation for companies that are vitally important to our long term national security to also receive some extra protection but also oversight.
I hope that was meant as sarcasm because you have that exactly backwards. The value of Apple’s chips comes from their custom design far more than the manufacturing process they are on. With enough money, anyone can contract and negotiate to manufacture on the best process.
It’s really unbelievable that Intel hasn’t pursued the SoC route at least for business laptop customers that prioritize battery life, etc. They really blew that opportunity.
As for national security, the US needs domestic manufacturing capabilities far more than they need any IP from Intel’s instruction set or even chip designs.
Notice that M2’s performance gain from M1 is exactly the same percent as TSMC’s transistor density increase. It’s all fab process. Design has little to do with it.
They also offer OpenAI services in Azure, using Nvidia GPU's. They could reduce a lot of cost with their own SoC.
My point is that they don't need to dominate the ARM SoC market. But having their own custom SoC will help them improve in markets they already dominate.