Arm Unveils Chips for Autonomous Vehicles

Arm, the chip maker synonymous with mobile processors, has announced a major expansion into the automotive industry with its first self-driving car chip designs. This move signifies a strategic shift for Arm, venturing beyond smartphones to capture a growing market hungry for advanced software and chip solutions.

The new chip designs, based on Arm's powerful Neoverse architecture typically used in data centres, have now been optimised for self-driving cars. Arm isn't venturing into this space alone. Industry leaders like Mercedes-Benz, Nvidia, and Texas Instruments are already incorporating Arm's new designs into their products and development pipelines.

This collaborative approach underscores the growing importance of software and hardware working in tandem to power the next generation of vehicles. The automotive sector represents a significant growth opportunity for Arm. While currently its smallest revenue segment, the automotive market is experiencing rapid expansion, with a market value expected to reach $120 billion by 2027 compared to $44 billion in 2022.

The first vehicles equipped with Arm's automotive technology are expected to hit the road within the next four to five years. However, Arm's innovative approach allows software developers to start writing code for these Arm-based chips well before production begins, potentially accelerating the overall development cycle for car manufacturers.