Updated Google announced a long-rumored data center CPU last month, but Chocolate Factory may already be the third-largest designer of data center processors, according to research.
How are data centers run sustainably?
The search giant, like the other major cloud operators, manufactures its own custom silicon, in this case its Tensor Processing Units (TPU). Although not offered for sale, shipments of Google's custom silicon for its own bit barns hit the 2 million mark last year, which semiconductor research outfit TechInsights believes puts it behind only Nvidia and Intel in terms of market share.
TechInsights says it pulled these numbers from its "unique expertise in the semiconductor supply chain," tips from memory players and its own coverage of the ASIC market.
In a recent report, TechInsights claims that Google's TPU shipments accelerated with each new generation, following the company's growth. With TPU v4 (introduced in 2021) and the rise of large language models, the size of Google's chip business increased significantly (see chart below), benefiting its main ASIC partner, Broadcom.
