Top Chip Brands: Crunchy Delights for Every Craving

When it comes to snacking, chips have always held a special place in our hearts and tastebuds. The market is brimming with brands that offer a tantalizing variety of flavors and innovations, each vying for the title of the best chip brand. From classic favorites to gourmet newcomers, the competition is deliciously fierce, promising something for every palate. Want to discover which brands made it to our list of top contenders? Read on to explore the savory details below.

Illustration of chip

Best brands of chip in 2025

Intel

Intel remains a significant player in the global semiconductor market, holding a 9.1% share as of 2023, despite facing competition from AMD, NVIDIA, and other rivals. The company has been advancing its chip production technologies, transitioning to more advanced nodes like Intel 3, Intel 20A, and Intel 18A, with the 18A set to be ready for manufacturing by 2025. Intel's market share in x86 data center chips has dropped to 76.4%, but the company is launching new sixth-generation Xeon server processors to reclaim its market position. In the client CPU segment, Intel still holds a dominant 79.4% share as of Q1 2024. Despite challenges, Intel continues to invest heavily in R&D and collaborate with governments, such as through the $2.4 billion deal from the CHIPS Act. For a comprehensive analysis of Intel's dominance in the chip market, explore more insights.

AMD

AMD has solidified its position as a leading chip producer, capturing a record 28.7% of the desktop CPU market in the third quarter of 2024, its highest share since late 2016. This represents a 5.7% quarterly and 9.6% annual gain, driven by robust sales of its Ryzen 9000 series and high-performance 3D V-Cache processors. In the server market, AMD achieved a 24.2% unit share and a 33.9% revenue share, reflecting a 2.7% annual revenue gain. The company also saw significant growth in the mobile CPU market, with a 22.3% market share. AMD's data center division has been a key growth driver, bolstered by increasing AI demand. For more detailed insights, read about AMD's desktop PC market share surge.

NVIDIA

NVIDIA stands as a dominant force in the chip industry, particularly in the GPU market, where it held an impressive 88% market share in Q1 2024, up from 80% in the previous quarter. The company's revenue from its Compute & Networking segment reached nearly $47.4 billion in fiscal 2024, with a significant portion coming from data center platforms and AI applications. In the data center GPU market, NVIDIA retained a 98% market share in 2023, shipping 3.76 million units and seeing a 42% year-on-year growth in sales. NVIDIA's annual revenue grew by 126% in 2023, reaching $60.9 billion, and the company's market cap hit $3 trillion, making it one of the most valuable companies globally. Its strong market position is further reinforced by its 65% share in the data-center AI chip market in 2023. For more detailed NVIDIA facts and statistics, visit their platform.

Qualcomm

Qualcomm is a leading producer of semiconductor chips, particularly dominating the global smartphone application processor (AP) market with a 36% share in Q1 2024. The company generated a peak revenue of USD 34.78 billion in 2022 and USD 29.02 billion in 2023, with its QCT segment contributing 84.82% of its revenue in 2023. Qualcomm holds a significant market share in the semiconductor industry, fluctuating between 2.5% and 5.8%, and is the world's seventh-largest semiconductor company with a market capitalization of USD 191.8 billion as of August 2024. The company's strong position is further reinforced by its 30% market share in the worldwide smartphone application processor market and its substantial investment in research and development, totaling USD 7.5 billion in 2023. Qualcomm's growth is driven by the rollout of 5G networks and the expanding market for Internet of Things (IoT) devices. For a detailed overview of Qualcomm's performance and industry statistics, visit the Qualcomm statistics page.

Samsung

Samsung, a leading South Korean multinational conglomerate, has been a pivotal player in the semiconductor industry, particularly known for its dominance in memory chips. As of 2023, Samsung's worldwide market share in the semiconductor industry stood at 7.5%, down from 12.3% in 2021, due to challenges in the memory sector and increased competition. Despite this decline, Samsung remains the largest global producer of DRAM chips and has seen a resurgence in demand for its memory offerings, especially for AI workloads, leading to a 13% year-over-year increase in revenue in Q1 2024. The company has also announced significant investments, including a $40 billion investment to build a semiconductor cluster in Texas. Samsung's historical peak in semiconductor market share was 15.5% in 2018. For further insights, you can explore how growing memory chip demand fuels 93.3% increase in Samsung Electronics' operating profit.

TSMC

TSMC (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company) is the undisputed leader in the global semiconductor foundry market, holding a market share of 61.7% in the first quarter of 2024 and as high as 62% in the second quarter of the same year. The company's dominance is driven by strong demand for advanced chips, particularly in the AI and smartphone sectors, with its 3nm and 5nm nodes contributing significantly to its revenue. TSMC's capacity utilization for its 5nm process reached 100% due to high demand from companies like Nvidia. The company's strategic decision to not manufacture products under its own name has allowed it to avoid direct competition with its customers, further solidifying its position. TSMC's advanced chip manufacturing capabilities, including a 90% market share in this segment, make it a crucial supplier for tech giants like Apple and Nvidia. For a detailed breakdown of the semiconductor foundries market share, you can explore more.

MediaTek

MediaTek has emerged as a leading producer of smartphone chips, particularly dominating the mid to low-end market. In Q1 2024, MediaTek held a 40% share in the global smartphone SoC market, driven by its successful launch of the Dimensity 9300 and increasing demand for 5G SoCs in the low-tier segment. The company's market share in the 5G smartphone chipset market rose to 29.2% in Q1 2024, up from 22.8% in Q1 2023, surpassing Qualcomm's share. MediaTek's strong ties with Chinese smartphone OEMs like OPPO, vivo, and Xiaomi have been instrumental in its growth. With shipments of 5G smartphones powered by MediaTek increasing by 53% year-over-year, the company continues to gain traction in the global market. For an in-depth analysis of the smartphone chip wars between MediaTek and Qualcomm, you can visit this article.

Broadcom

Broadcom has emerged as a leading producer in the AI chip market, with its AI revenue surging 220% to $12.2 billion in fiscal year 2024, driven by its innovative AI XPUs and Ethernet networking portfolio. The company's fiscal year 2024 revenue grew 44% year-over-year to a record $51.6 billion, with semiconductor revenue hitting a record $30.1 billion. Broadcom's strategic partnerships with major tech giants and its acquisition of VMware have solidified its position, capturing over $12 billion of the total serviceable AI revenue. The company anticipates the AI market to present a revenue opportunity of $60-90 billion by fiscal 2027. Broadcom's stock has seen a significant increase, with a 62% year-to-date surge, reflecting its robust growth potential. Read more about how Broadcom's AI chips impact the semiconductor market.

ARM Holdings

ARM Holdings is a leading producer of chip designs, dominating the smartphone CPU market with a remarkable 99% market share and maintaining high market share in other mobile and battery-powered devices. The company's Armv9 technology has experienced significant adoption, contributing 20% of royalty revenue in the fourth quarter, up from 15% in the third quarter, driven by its versatile applications in smartphones, servers, IoT, and networking devices. ARM's revenue for FY2023 was $2.8 billion, with royalty revenue expected to grow in the mid-20% range for fiscal 2025 and 2026. The company's chips are favored for their energy efficiency, which is particularly vital in data centers where minimizing energy consumption is crucial. ARM's licensing model allows customers like Apple and Qualcomm to customize the architecture to their needs.

IBM

IBM stands as a pioneering force in the semiconductor industry, particularly with its groundbreaking 2-nanometer chip technology, which packs 50 billion transistors into a space no larger than a fingernail. This innovation is expected to significantly enhance battery life and reduce the carbon footprint of data centers. Developed at IBM's Albany, New York tech center, this technology includes advanced techniques such as bottom dielectric isolation and the inner space dry process to improve power efficiency and gate control. IBM's research and development in this area position the company as a leader in driving the future of semiconductor manufacturing, with potential partnerships with major players like Intel and Samsung. This breakthrough is part of IBM's ongoing commitment to pushing the boundaries of Moore's Law. For more details on IBM's semiconductor advancements, read this article on IBM chips revolutionizing semiconductor manufacturing.