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Artificial intelligence

AMD’s data-center sales nearly double; Arm’s faster growth comes from licensing

AMD reported 97% growth in data-center revenue, while Arm’s license and other revenue grew 50% and royalties 8%, showing distinct routes from AI demand to recognized sales.

170 words · 1 min

AMD’s November 3 results show data-center revenue rising from $4.341 billion to $8.546 billion year over year.

Management attributes the growth to EPYC server processors and the launch of Instinct MI450-series GPUs. The segment contains both CPUs and accelerators, so its 97% growth cannot be used as a measure of AI GPU market share. [1][3]

Arm’s November 4 filing tells a different commercial story. Revenue for its September quarter reached $1.443 billion, including $773 million of license and other revenue, up 50%, and $670 million of royalties, up 8%. License arrangements can recognize revenue when IP is delivered; royalties are generally estimated for the quarter in which customers ship products incorporating Arm technology, then adjusted as reports arrive. [2][4]

Together the releases indicate demand reaching more of the compute stack. They do not make the companies interchangeable suppliers: AMD’s segment sells a broad hardware portfolio, while Arm’s revenue mix still depends heavily on licensing and royalties. AMD’s quarter ended September 26; Arm’s ended September 30. Compare each with its own prior-year period. [1][2]

Sources & details 4 sources
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Reporting sources

  1. AMD · Q3 2026 filed results

    November 3 exhibit. Exact data-center values $8,546M versus $4,341M; segment scope includes CPUs, GPUs and other products; Q4 guidance is forward-looking.

  2. Arm · November 4 Form 6-K

    Recovered original PDF. FY2027 Q2 ended September 30. Revenue table and recognition policy distinguish license/other from royalties.

  3. Tom’s Hardware · AMD results

    Independently authored report corroborates growth and product mix; its $8.55B is rounded, so the figure uses the original $8.546B.

  4. Investing.com · Arm results

    Independently authored earnings report corroborates $773M licensing and $670M royalties; not Reuters authorship despite a Reuters photograph credit.

Images & figures

  • Growth differs between a mixed hardware segment, licenses and shipment-linked royalties.

    Euangelion · original explanatory figure · Source · Usage terms · Download figure