Is Arm owned by Apple?

Arm’s IPO: A Giant Step, Not an Apple Bite

SoftBank’s Arm is preparing for a momentous IPO on the Nasdaq, potentially becoming the biggest tech listing of the year. The anticipated valuation, reaching a staggering $52 billion, highlights the company’s crucial role in the global technology landscape. However, amidst the excitement and speculation, a common misconception often surfaces: Is Arm owned by Apple? The answer is a resounding no.

While Apple is a significant client of Arm, utilizing its architecture in its immensely popular iPhones, iPads, and Mac computers, it doesn’t own the company. This confusion likely stems from Apple’s prominent role in the RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Computing) architecture revolution, which Arm designs are based upon. Apple was indeed one of the founding members of Acorn Computers, the company that spun off Arm in 1990. However, Apple’s stake was purely financial and didn’t translate to ownership after the spin-off.

SoftBank, the Japanese multinational conglomerate, acquired Arm in 2016 for $32 billion. This acquisition took Arm private, removing it from public trading. Now, SoftBank is poised to reintroduce Arm to the stock market, aiming to capitalize on the growing demand for its chip designs.

Arm’s business model centers around licensing its intellectual property, specifically its instruction set architectures (ISAs), rather than manufacturing chips itself. This unique approach allows numerous companies, including tech giants like Apple, Qualcomm, and Samsung, to utilize Arm’s designs in their own processors. This widespread adoption has positioned Arm at the heart of the mobile computing revolution and cemented its importance in the broader tech ecosystem.

The upcoming IPO represents a significant step for Arm, marking its return to the public market and potentially injecting billions into SoftBank’s coffers. While Apple remains a key partner and beneficiary of Arm’s technology, it’s crucial to understand the distinction: Apple uses Arm’s designs, but it doesn’t own the company. This IPO underscores Arm’s independent strength and its vital role in shaping the future of computing, a future powered not by one tech titan, but by the innovative designs at the core of billions of devices worldwide.