SoftBank is buying ARM for $32 billion — because everything’s a computer now

Japan’s #SoftBank is buying U.K.-based chip design firm #ARMHoldings for about $32 billion, according to the FT. Why? Everything is a computer now, and ARM has been one of the winners of the mobile revolution. ARM designs chips — but doesn’t actually make them — for a huge variety of devices. It dominates the market for smartphones — Apple is a big client, as is Samsung — and its chips shows up in other consumer gadgets, as well as more-industrial-like devices and “internet of things” ( #IoT ) sensors. The number of chips containing ARM processors reached almost 15 billion in 2015, up from about six billion in 2010.

http://www.recode.net/2016/7/17/12210564/softbank-arm-holdings-deal?mkt_tok=eyJpIjoiTW1Rd1lqY3hNV05sTm1ReiIsInQiOiJMKzVMU21ONWRBamZ6SXVUdzU3OWUzakVUWjJKU2MxakRncFRzQ0hlcXNVTFlKZzR3QklXQ2N2NDNMWlhFVUxFZVg3OFwvSU4xUXk2UWlpTHRPUDZXdXNjdGxaMTJQVCtRU0QwVjNranBOU289In0%3D