Google may be working on developing its own custom chips for future Chromebooks, essentially following the search giant's upcoming Google Pixel 6, which will use custom silicon designed in-house.

This was reported by Nikkei Asia, which cites unnamed sources and claims that Google is developing an Arm-based chip for customers to be used in Chromebooks and Chrome OS devices in 2023. Such a move could help Google break away from its dependence on Intel for chips for Chromebooks. If this rumor is legitimate, it will be very interesting for Chromebook users.

Why should we care what Google's silicon engineers are up to? Because the move to in-house chips could shake up Chromebooks in several ways.

First, as seen with the MacBook Air M1 and Apple's custom M1 chip, companies that manufacture devices from the silicon level have strong control over how the hardware interacts with the software, leading to impressive optimization. As a result, Chromebooks with custom chips designed by Google could offer higher performance and power efficiency than Chromebooks with Intel processors. [Google has already claimed that the custom Tensor chip in the upcoming Pixel 6 will provide an AI pipeline between silicon and software to deliver machine learning smart capabilities faster and more effectively than devices with Qualcomm's Snapdragon chips.

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Third, by moving away from Intel, Google will have more control over the cost of manufacturing and producing Chromebook chips. And that could mean cheaper, yet higher-performance Chromebooks.

How likely is it that this unconfirmed information is legitimate? We would say that it is quite possible, as we have already seen other tech giants start designing their own chips. Besides Apple, Amazon, Facebook, Microsoft, and Tesla are already designing semiconductors for their services and products, which seems to indicate that custom chips are becoming a competitive advantage.

Google remains tight-lipped about its Chromebook plans. But before 2021 is over, Google's silicon ambitions may reveal a little more. Stay tuned.