Exclusive: Arm estimates a 14-fold increase in data center customers since 2021, company says

Rapid Growth in Arm Data Center Customer Base

Arm, the chip technology company, has seen a dramatic transformation in its footprint within the data center industry. According to recent company revelations, the number of customers using Arm-based chips in their data centers has exploded to 70,000—a staggering 14-fold increase since 2021[1]. This surge reflects not only Arm's ambitious expansion outside its traditional mobile market, but also its growing influence in the PC and data center sectors.

Driving Forces Behind the Expansion

Under the leadership of CEO Rene Haas, Arm has aggressively diversified its product offerings, targeting areas like the PC market and high-performance data center chips. The company has particularly benefited from the explosive growth in artificial intelligence (AI) and generative AI computing, which require robust and efficient processing power[1]. Arm’s architecture is uniquely positioned for this challenge, known for delivering high performance with low energy consumption—critical for powering modern smartphones and, increasingly, data center processors.

Arm’s Market Ambitions and Industry Impact

• Market Share Goals: Arm aims to capture 50% of the global data center CPU market by the end of 2025, up from about 15% previously[2][3].
• AI Server Focus: Much of this growth is driven by the adoption of Arm-based chips in AI servers, such as those offered by Nvidia (including the GB200 and GB300 machines), custom silicon from major cloud service providers, and Ampere Computing-based systems[2].
• Changing Software Landscape: Traditionally, most servers ran on AMD EPYC or Intel Xeon CPUs based on the x86 instruction set. However, the software ecosystem is evolving, and some server applications are now developed for Arm processors first, before being ported to x86[2].

The Rise of Arm in Cloud Computing

Cloud giants such as Amazon Web Services (AWS) have been early adopters of Arm technology. Half of the processors used by AWS for its cloud instances are now Arm-based Graviton CPUs, reflecting a significant shift away from traditional AMD and Intel chips[2]. Microsoft and Google are also investing in custom Arm-based data center processors, signaling broader industry momentum toward Arm architecture[2].

Conclusion: A Transformative Moment for Arm

The remarkable growth of Arm-based chips in data centers is reshaping the industry. As demand for energy-efficient computing rises—fueled by the expansion of AI applications—Arm is poised to become a central player in the future of data processing, both in the cloud and beyond.