CPU market to grow 5x by 2030, BofA says

June 11, 2026 - 19:33

A new report from Bank of America projects the global CPU market will expand five times its current size by the end of the decade. The forecast points to a compound annual growth rate that far outpaces previous estimates, driven by surging demand across data centers, artificial intelligence workloads, and edge computing devices. Analysts at the bank highlight that traditional PC and server processors will see steady demand, but the real explosion comes from specialized chips designed for AI training and inference. These chips, often called accelerators, are now being integrated into everything from cloud servers to smartphones.

The report also notes that geopolitical factors and supply chain shifts could reshape manufacturing hubs, with more investment flowing into domestic fabrication plants in the United States and Europe. While Intel and AMD remain dominant in the x86 space, ARM-based designs are gaining ground in laptops and servers, thanks to power efficiency gains. The 5x growth figure assumes no major disruptions, but even a conservative scenario still points to a tripling of the market. For investors, the takeaway is clear: the silicon that powers modern computing is becoming a bigger piece of the global economy, and companies that can deliver high-performance, low-power designs will capture the most value.