Qualcomm Introduces 10nm Processor for Data Centers

Qualcomm has announced its first data center processor. The Centriq 2400 has 48 cores made at 10nm. The American processor designer has also developed its own core for the processor.

Qualcomm calls the core Falkor and the Centriq 2400 is the first processor with Falkor cores, the manufacturer says. The processor designer does not mention where it will have the Centriq 2400 made, but for recent Snapdragon socs it has teamed up with Samsung. The South Korean manufacturer is also working on a 10nm process, which makes it obvious that Qualcomm has the processor made there.

The Falkor cores are made on the same ARMv8 architecture as the Kryo cores in Snapdragons and for example Cortex A53, A57, A72 and A73 from ARM. Qualcomm probably chose ARM because it has a lot of experience with the architecture and data centers also benefit from some of the advantages of ARM over X86, especially energy efficiency. More energy-efficient processors generate less heat, so less energy is needed to keep the room cool.

The Centriq 2400 will be released in the second half of next year and is already on its way to some potential customers for sampling. This makes it not the first 10nm processor from Qualcomm that will appear. The American company is releasing its Snapdragon 835 for smartphones earlier.