CortexA78

The Cortex-A78 is a central processing unit (CPU) core designed by Arm Holdings. It is part of the Armv8.2-A architecture and was announced in May 2020. The Cortex-A78 is a high-performance core intended for mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets, as well as other applications requiring a balance of power and efficiency. It is the successor to the Cortex-A77.

Key improvements in the Cortex-A78 over its predecessor include enhanced performance per watt, a wider instruction pipeline, and an improved branch predictor. These enhancements contribute to faster execution of tasks and better power efficiency. The core is designed to work in heterogeneous computing configurations, often paired with Arm's Cortex-A55 or Cortex-A510 efficiency cores in a big.LITTLE or DynamIQ setup. This allows devices to dynamically allocate tasks to the most appropriate core, optimizing performance when needed and conserving power during less demanding operations.

The Cortex-A78 supports a range of advanced features, including Arm's TrustZone security technology for hardware-level protection of sensitive data. It also includes support for various instruction set extensions that can accelerate specific workloads, such as machine learning and digital signal processing. The core is manufactured using advanced process nodes, typically around 7nm or smaller, further contributing to its power efficiency and performance capabilities. Its widespread adoption by major semiconductor manufacturers highlights its significance in the mobile and embedded computing landscape.