LYON, FRANCE – The processor market had a remarkable year in 2021, achieving a historic high of US$155.5 billion with a robust growth rate of 22.3%. However, the following year, it experienced a slight downturn, with revenue settling at US$154 billion. The primary factor contributing to this decline was the CPU segment, which was mainly impacted by reduced shipments in the PC category and increased competition from non-x86 APUs.

Conversely, the APU market saw significant growth in 2022, and the data center sector exhibited substantial expansion, leading to a shift in revenue distribution. While the total revenue for processors is expected to reach US$242 billion by 2028, CPUs are expected to maintain their dominant position, GPUs are projected to experience significant growth, and data center is poised to emerge as the fastest-growing market.

In this context, Yole Intelligence releases its Status of the Processor Industry 2023 report. In this report, the company, part of Yole Group, gives a broad overview of the semiconductor processor industry, as well as an in-depth understanding of the market trends, ecosystem, and players and offers critical technical insights and analyses into future technology trends and challenges.

More advanced iterations of processors demand increased integration of circuitry, particularly larger blocks of logic and SRAM. In the past, progress toward denser logic was as straightforward as the next lithography shrink. However, as transistors continue to shrink in size, they have become more intricate and expensive to manufacture. In 2022, the industry is approaching the end of the finFET era, with gate-all-around architectures at 3nm and 2nm on the horizon.

This evolution is led by major players like Intel, TSMC, AMD, NVIDIA, and Samsung. High-performance packaging platforms like Si interposers and hybrid bonding are becoming increasingly pivotal across various applications, reveals Yole Intelligence in this new report.

The processor market is largely dominated by a few key players: Intel, AMD, Nvidia, and Qualcomm, with these giants holding 54% of the total market share.

Competition is growing, with new entrants and tech giants like Amazon and Alibaba entering the CPU arena. Qualcomm, MediaTek, and Apple lead in APUs, with 32% of the market. The SoC FPGA and AI ASIC segments are led by AMD, Intel, and tech giants like Google and Amazon.

The processor startup landscape is dynamic, raising substantial funds, especially in AI-focused endeavors, with China leading the pack. The semiconductor industry in China is evolving, driven by investments and a growing ecosystem. In 2022, notable M&A activities included AMD’s acquisition of Xilinx and Pensando, Intel’s failed attempt to acquire Tower Semiconductor, and Nvidia’s abandoned bid for Arm.

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