Tuesday, 10 November 2026
Silicon Analytica
Every AI story is a chip story.
Ranking · 18 companies

Semiconductor companies ranked by R&D intensity (latest quarter)

Latest fiscal yearLatest quarter

Arm ranks first by R&D intensity in its latest quarter (Q2 FY2027) at 59.4%, ahead of Cadence at 32.9%.

The median across the 18 companies with comparable stored figures is 9.9%; Micron ranks last at 3.5%.

The biggest change from a year earlier was at Broadcom: −9.3 pp to 9.8%.

% of revenueArm: 59.4% · Q2 FY2027 (Calculated)Arm59.4%Q2 FY2027Cadence: 32.9% · Q3 2026 (Calculated)Cadence32.9%Q3 2026Synopsys: 29.1% · Q3 FY2026 (Calculated)Synopsys29.1%Q3 FY2026Qualcomm: 26.0% · Q4 FY2026 and FY2026 (Calculated)Qualcomm26.0%Q4 FY2026 and FY2026Intel: 21.1% · Q3 FY2026 (Calculated)Intel21.1%Q3 FY2026AMD: 21.0% · Q3 FY2026 (Calculated)AMD21.0%Q3 FY2026NXP: 16.2% · Q3 2026 (Calculated)NXP16.2%Q3 2026Applied Materials: 12.1% · Q3 FY2026 (Calculated)Applied Materials12.1%Q3 FY2026ASML: 10.1% · Q3 FY2026 (Calculated)ASML10.1%Q3 FY2026Broadcom: 9.8% · Q3 FY2026 (Calculated)Broadcom9.8%Q3 FY2026GlobalFoundries: 9.7% · Q3 2026 (Calculated)GlobalFoundries9.7%Q3 2026KLA: 9.6% · Q1 FY2027 (Calculated)KLA9.6%Q1 FY2027Tokyo Electron: 9.1% · Q2 FY2027 (Calculated)Tokyo Electron9.1%Q2 FY2027Texas Instruments: 8.8% · Q3 2026 (Calculated)Texas Instruments8.8%Q3 2026Lam Research: 8.1% · Q1 FY2027 / September 2026 quarter (Calculated)Lam Research8.1%Q1 FY2027 / September…NVIDIA: 7.3% · Q2 FY2027 (Calculated)NVIDIA7.3%Q2 FY2027TSMC: 6.0% · Q3 FY2026 (Calculated)TSMC6.0%Q3 FY2026Micron: 3.5% · Q4 FY2026 (Calculated)Micron3.5%Q4 FY2026MedianSource: company filings and results releases (latest quarter, periods ending Jul 2026–Sep 2026) · Calculated bySilicon Analytica from reported figuresSilicon Analyticasiliconanalytica.com/rankings/rd-intensity?period=quarter
  • Calculated R&D expense ÷ revenue (company-stated ratios used where filed).
View sources (19)
Source
1Arm59.4% Calc.Q2 FY2027Exhibit 99.2 FYE27 Q2 (30-Sep-26) Shareholder Le… ↗
2Cadence32.9% Calc.Q3 2026 Cadence Reports Third Quarter 2026 Financial R… ↗
3Synopsys29.1% Calc.Q3 FY2026Synopsys Form 10-Q filed 2026-08-26 ↗
4Qualcomm26.0% Calc.Q4 FY2026 and FY2026FY2026 4th Quarter Earnings Release ↗
5Intel21.1% Calc.Q3 FY2026Intel Reports Third-Quarter 2026 Financial Resul… ↗
6AMD21.0% Calc.Q3 FY2026AMD Reports Third Quarter 2026 Financial Results ↗
7NXP16.2% Calc.Q3 2026NXP Semiconductors Reports Third Quarter 2026 Re… ↗
8Applied Materials12.1% Calc.Q3 FY2026Applied Materials Form 10-Q filed 2026-08-20 ↗
9ASML10.1% Calc.Q3 FY2026ASML quarterly US GAAP financial statements (For… ↗
10Broadcom9.8% Calc.Q3 FY2026Broadcom Form 10-Q filed 2026-09-10 ↗
11GlobalFoundries9.7% Calc.Q3 2026GlobalFoundries Reports Third Quarter 2026 Finan… ↗
12KLA9.6% Calc.Q1 FY2027KLA Corporation Reports Fiscal 2027 First Quarte… ↗
13Tokyo Electron9.1% Calc.Q2 FY2027Summary of Consolidated Financial Results for th… ↗
14Texas Instruments8.8% Calc.Q3 2026Investor relations - TI reports third quarter 20… ↗
15Lam Research8.1% Calc.Q1 FY2027 / September 2026 quarterLam Research Corporation Reports Financial Resul… ↗
16NVIDIA7.3% Calc.Q2 FY2027NVIDIA Form 10-Q filed 2026-08-26 ↗
17TSMC6.0% Calc.Q3 FY2026TSMC Reports Third Quarter EPS of NT$29.43 ↗
18Micron3.5% Calc.Q4 FY2026Micron Form 10-K filed 2026-10-09 ↗

Each company's latest quarter is compared (latest quarter, periods ending Jul 2026–Sep 2026); fiscal calendars differ, so each row shows its own period. Companies without the needed stored figures are left out. Figures update automatically when new filings are stored.

Questions

Which semiconductor company has the highest R&D intensity?

Arm ranks first by R&D intensity in its latest quarter (Q2 FY2027) at 59.4%, ahead of Cadence at 32.9%.

What is the median R&D intensity of the semiconductor companies covered?

The median across the 18 companies with comparable stored figures is 9.9%; Micron ranks last at 3.5%.

Other rankings

RevenueRevenue growth y/yGross marginOperating marginNet marginCapital expenditureFree cash flowFinancials leaderboard