Which stock stands to gain the most from Apple Silicon?
If your reading this you probably know that Apple is putting its own chips into their laptops at the end of this year. This is basically the same silicon one can find in an iPhone or an iPad but just made for a MacBook.
Now, while no one is really sure what this means for the wider computer market, it has the potential to be big, not just for Apple but for the whole industry. As a result I think one company, if it plays it’s cards right, might even have more to gain than Apple itself.
So let’s assume that Apple’s chips are going to perform the same they do on the iPad but cranked up to 11. If that’s true, then we are looking at some chips that can go head to head with Intel’s and AMD’s, while at the same time offering better heat management and energy consumption. Which would mean that they can finally design the laptop they always wanted without having to wait for Intel to drag its legs. For all intents and purposes, this will be huge for Apple, I have very little doubt about that.
What happens to Intel?
This is where it gets interesting. Now there are two scenarios when it comes to Intel. Number 1 is that x86 chips have always been capable of more, but Intel just never actually had the competition to push them for more, which would mean that Intel can respond to Apple silicon. This would mean the next iteration of Windows laptops will be as thin as light and as powerful as the new Apple ones. Number 2 and the more probable scenario, is that Intel won’t be able to compete or at least it won’t be able to do it fast enough. This remains to be seen but from their 11th-gen announcement it doesn’t seem like Intel has any particular aces up its sleeve.
What happens to PC manufacturers, are they left stranded as Apple bites a huge chunk out of their sales?
Microsoft knows what’s coming and they have known for a while, the signs are all there. The last iteration of the Surface 15' laptops came out with special processors co-designed by Microsoft and AMD seemingly to see if they can get more from a chip just by the mear fact that they are designed in cooperation . Which to be honest is the right move since it has worked well for Apple for the longest time on iPhones and iPads. But I bring that up, as an indication that Microsoft the very heart of PCs is trying to move away from traditional chip architecture. The really worrysome sign for Intel is that Microsoft re-designed Windows to run on ARM. . They even went as far as to design a device like the Surface pro X that runs windows on an ARM chip. They tried it in the past, but this time they seem more determined. It doesn’t do it well, but that’s not the point, it is just an indication of the direction the market is moving towards.
The mere fact that Microsoft is trying different things and especially ARM chips is evident of how much trouble Intel is in.
The truth is that most probably no manufacturer will be able to compete with Apple silicon and to make things worse there is certainly no other company on the planet that can ensure control over one product’s design and supply chain like Apple can.
On the bright side, we need to remember that escaping an operating system is a really difficult option for someone who is not “into computers”. Certain people just can’t switch to Mac whether it is convenience or just the fact they want to play some games that Macbooks famously don’t support. But am not really sure is going to be enough.
So, which company stands to gain maybe even more than Apple itself?
Apple isn’t going to sell its chips to other manufacturers, that’s just not how they roll, so where do all these PC manufacturers turn to in their time of need? The only real option is Qualcomm! That’s the chip Microsoft put in the Surface pro X and that’s the company other manufacturers like HP, Acer and Lenovo are trying out already.
If Apple moves to powerful thinner and lighter laptops without fans, PC manufacturers have no choice, but to move to Qualcomm if they even want to be part of the conversation. Am willing to bet, that power will not even be the question. For most users is just gonna be whether the laptop will look as light and as thin as one of these new Macs, and the only way to do that is with Qualcomm.
So in my humble opinion all Qualcomm needs to do is stay the course and Apple might help it become the worlds biggest PC chip manufacturer. This is something that should give you pause next time you’re thinking on which stock to bet on.
