Jon Peddie Research just released its recent findings in the RISC-V market, which can be found in the JPR Q1’26 RISC-V Market Update report.
Jon Peddie Research today released its RISC-V Market Insights – Q1 2026 Update, tracking a structural shift in the RISC-V ecosystem from open-ended customization toward hardened, platform-based productization. The update identifies a decisive change in market incentives: Value is concentrating in integrated platforms and long-term integration contracts, not in low-fee, per-core IP licensing.
“RISC-V has entered its industrial phase and is becoming hard to exclude from serious conversation and strategic planning across the semiconductor industry,” said David Harold, JPR senior analyst. “Canonical, Red Hat, and Yocto showing up with serious alignment around RVA23 silicon suggests RISC-V has arrived. RISC-V in Q1 2026 finally looks less like a movement and more like a market.”
Key findings in the Q1’26 update
- Foundries move up-stack. GlobalFoundries’ acquisition of MIPS signals a foundry push to own CPU tuned to their nodes, safety docs in hand, and packaging paths pre-qualified—shortening time to integration.
- Platforms over parts. Vendors are winning with pre-hardened subsystems (e.g., Tenstorrent/CoreLab’s Atlantis for embodied AI) and software-first vectors (e.g., SiFive’s refreshed Intelligence line) that reduce risk and remove months of bring-up.
- Software readiness crosses a threshold. Nvidia CUDA support on RISC-V hosts and growing alignment around profiles and standards make RISC-V feel familiar on Day One.
- Consolidation accelerates. With too many IP vendors chasing too few premium sockets, M&A and deep alliances are the logical response.
The report connects the dots from customer demand to vendor strategy.
“The chaos of the early days of the RISC-V revolution has settled out now, and several companies have established a viable and in-demand business,” said Dr. Jon Peddie, president of JPR. “The leading suppliers have emerged, and not surprisingly, they are the ones with the deepest stack and problem-solving tools. Also not surprising is that many of the members of the new companies are seasoned CPU designers and know the buyers’ needs very well. It’s still a mixed bag between IP and chip suppliers, but RISC-V has definitely established its traction and is a welcome and viable part of the computer ecosystem center.”
Adds Harold, “RISC-V’s center of gravity has moved to production-grade building blocks. If you’re not arriving with a platform—firmware, safety packets, verification collateral, packaging options—you’re late to the real conversation.”
To learn more or to subscribe, visit www.jonpeddie.com.
JPR also publishes a series of reports on GPU quarterly shipments, CPU shipments, the graphics add-in board market, the workstation market, and the PC gaming hardware market. The latter covers the total market, including systems and accessories, and examines 31 countries.
Pricing and availability
JPR’s Q1’26 RISC-V Market Insights report is available now for $4,000 for four quarterly issues, which includes a half hour of telephone consulting time per quarter, or $2,500 for a single issue with telephone time. For information about this and other JPR reports, go to jonpeddie.com.
