British chip firm ARM Holdings has been granted a prestigious Queen’s Award for Enterprise for its contributions to innovation as the world’s leading supplier of low power, high performance semiconductor IP.
Affectionately known as the “British Chippie” by the U.K.’s semiconductor press, ARM, based in Cambridge, England, designs the chips that wind up in 99% of the world’s mobile phones, as well as digital cameras, car infotainment products and other embedded solutions.
Long considered Intel Corp.s arch nemesis in the world of mobile chips, ARM has gone from strength to strength, even outperforming as the industry suffered a crippling recession in 2009.
Recently at Microsoft Corp.’s MIX Developer Conference, the firm showed its OS – previously restricted to an xX86 stack – running on a 1 GHz ARM chip, a huge coup for the little company.
Only firms that are thought to have performed “outstanding achievements” in the categories of Innovation, International Trade and Sustainable Development are rewarded with the Queen’s Awards for Enterprise, thus it is no small honor for ARM.
