Research firm Bernstein says Huawei has closed part of the mobile chip performance gap with Apple after tests showed the Kirin 9050 Pro — Huawei’s first chip built on the Tau framework and produced on a 7nm process — outperformed Apple’s 3nm A17 Pro.
Bernstein reported that the Tau Scaling Law has paid off for Huawei, with the Kirin 9050 Pro delivering superior test results compared with Apple’s A17 Pro. The research firm attributes the outcome to the new Tau-based design and the 7nm manufacturing used for the Kirin 9050 Pro.
Kirin 9050 Pro and the Tau framework
The Kirin 9050 Pro is identified as the first processor based on the Tau framework. According to Bernstein, despite using 7nm technology rather than Apple’s 3nm node, the Kirin 9050 Pro outperformed the A17 Pro in the tests cited by the firm, narrowing the competitive gap between Huawei and Apple in mobile chip performance.
Bernstein’s findings focus on the relative performance of the two chips and the role of the Tau Scaling Law in Huawei’s latest design; the research firm presented these results as evidence that Huawei’s approach has yielded measurable gains.
