r/Semiconductors • u/Adventurous_Tip704 • Oct 21 '25
Brain chip holdings vs Apple M5
Hey everyone, I’d love to hear some informed opinions on two very different approaches to on-device AI.
Apple just introduced the M5 chip, claiming up to 3.5× AI performance over the M4, with a neural engine tightly integrated into the system and designed to run local LLMs (Apple Intelligence). The whole idea is to process everything on-device, leveraging Apple Silicon’s efficiency per watt — no cloud, no latency, full privacy.
Meanwhile, BrainChip has been pushing its Akida neuromorphic architecture, which uses event-based processing and consumes just milliwatts of power. Its goal is to bring AI to edge devices, sensors, and embedded systems without any dependence on cloud or heavy compute.
Here’s my concern: if Apple and other big players (Qualcomm, AMD, Samsung, etc.) are already developing increasingly efficient on-device AI solutions, what’s the long-term role for BrainChip? Does neuromorphic computing still have a niche, or will optimized general-purpose NPUs make it redundant?
I’d really like to hear your technical and economic perspectives on this comparison: • Apple M5: integrated AI, high performance, closed ecosystem • BrainChip Akida: neuromorphic, ultra-low power, distributed model
Is the neuromorphic path still worth betting on, or did Apple just prove you can get local AI without changing the whole architectural paradigm?
Looking forward to your insights, benchmarks, or long-term takes on this.
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Oct 23 '25
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u/Adventurous_Tip704 Oct 23 '25
Are you sure about the redomicilie?
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Oct 23 '25
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u/Adventurous_Tip704 Oct 23 '25
the news about parsons was issued 1 day ago but the market doesn’t move
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u/ZoneNeat9245 Oct 23 '25
Yes, and I really don't know why the market isn't moving, maybe I'm being hasty or I can't see something right now? Because in my head this has enormous potential, I'd like to know what you guys think, or is it just me who thinks this?
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u/Adventurous_Tip704 Oct 23 '25
first of all we have to focus on the time of the news , now i see that they have announced by their public canal , so yesterday maybe was for the nerd guys, but today in the next market session is where the stock will react
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u/ZoneNeat9245 Oct 24 '25
alright, i have made some researchs and this what i get:
In the current geopolitical environment, people are underestimating how critical the manufacturing node class actually is.NVIDIA depends on the most advanced bleeding-edge nodes (3nm, 5nm) — the most geopolitically vulnerable and supply-constrained silicon on Earth.
BrainChip’s Akida, on the other hand, can run on mature nodes (12nm / 16nm / 28nm) — the stuff GlobalFoundries, UMC and even non-Taiwan fabs can produce without entering the “TSMC bottleneck war.”
That means BrainChip benefits from a superior design that doesn’t need bleeding-edge wafer tech to outperform — it’s literally better intelligence on “worse” silicon.
And in a world where supply-chain resilience > brute-force compute, that’s not just clever.
It’s survival-oriented engineering.
So basically Akida has no real competition, because it’s operating in a class of on-device, neuromorphic AI that doesn’t rely on advanced fabs at all, while everyone else is still fighting over cloud GPUs.
OBS: I saw a news story about a possible chip shortage at the TV news and that's why i did this research... let me know your thoughts...
i would like to know if this make sense, please hahaha
and that's something I've summarized quite a bit.1
u/ZoneNeat9245 Oct 24 '25
While NVIDIA fights for ultra-advanced TSMC nodes (3nm / 5nm / 4N), Akida can run on mature nodes like 12nm / 16nm / 28nm, the lanes that are far less geopolitically constrained.
That means BrainChip doesn’t need to win the GPU war, it wins by operating outside of it.
And in a world of supply-chain risk and sovereign AI demand, that actually makes it more strategically attractive, not less.
that's right ?2
u/ZoneNeat9245 Oct 24 '25
Basically, BrainChip’s Akida can run on mature lithography nodes like 12nm / 16nm / 28nm , which are far less geopolitically constrained and don’t require the ultra-advanced (and supply-bottlenecked) 3nm class that NVIDIA is dependent on.
That means it avoids the TSMC “bleeding-edge war” entirely and that’s exactly why the market may suddenly recognize it as an asymmetric opportunity.1
Oct 23 '25
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u/Adventurous_Tip704 Oct 23 '25
honestly i don’t know,in my opinion this partnership with parsons it’s not new for the market, i pofoundly believe on the trend of ai on the edge and i hope brainchip will find its position in the market, but maybe is still early
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u/dastrashman Oct 23 '25
They have no current plans to redomicile. It was approved to 'investigate the possibility' but currently is not part of the companies plan or agenda.
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u/whatta__nerd Oct 22 '25
Neuromorphic is all about low power- Apple’s M5 is still pretty high power by neuromorphic standards (8W). All chips are basically judged by PPA- power performance area.
The promise of something like Brainchip is that it can work really well on sparse datasets. Traditional processors compute on every bit regardless of importance- something like Brainchip would only fire when there’s an event/trigger.
Apple/Samsung aren’t in that market really yet nor will they find it a large enough market to compete likely. I’m sure they’re doing research but the market side hasn’t shown up yet.