Revenues from global smartphone application processors are expected to grow at a CAGR of 10.8 percent, 2013 – 2018, to around $30 billion, according to a report from Strategy Analytics. The smartphone application processor market is expected to be fueled by LTE-Advanced, 64-bit, multi-core and semiconductor technologies.

The stand-alone application processor use in smartphones is forecast to drop to 28 percent, in 2018, from 38 percent in 2012, and is attributed to an increased push from integrated vendors such as Qualcomm, MediaTek, Spreadtrum, Broadcom and Marvell. Multi-core penetration in smartphone application processors is expected to go from 50 percent in 2012 to almost 100 percent by 2018.

The 64-bit chip penetration in smartphone application processors is expected to rise from 3 percent this past year to approximately 75 percent by 2018, with Apple, Intel, Qualcomm and Samsung, among others, driving the growth. The report also shows that ARM-based chip penetration of smartphones will fall to 83 percent in 2018, from almost 100 percent in 2012, the explanation being Intel’s concerted smartphone effort, combined with its lead in 14-nm-and-beyond process technologies.