Apparently, there is some political turmoil going on right now regarding RISC-V …
I’ve not used RISC-V in a project yet, but I’m hearing that the instruction set and architecture are fundamentally good technology. Code density is higher than anything else out there. According to this article, SiFive’s RISC-V P670 processor provides twice the compute density as an ARM Cortex-A78.
This debate may be missing a fundamental concept – open source is the only way you will get the technology you need, whether you are the largest company or the most powerful nation. You can’t manufacture or create on-demand the innovation that is happening in open source today. With ~27,000 engineers, Google actively participates in open source not out of altruism, but as a calculated business decision. If the US does not participate in RISC-V, they might not have access to the best technology. Open source is not about getting or giving away free stuff, but rather creating a culture and environment where a level of innovation can happen that is impossible in any business or government organization.