> I believe Qualcomm usually do their own from scratch but they are being quite
> public about this one:
> http://semiaccurate.com/2017/01/03/qualcomm-opens-bit-10nm-snapdragon-835-soc/
> It's also mentioned in a Microprocessor report who are usually a rather more
> reliable source.

I wasn't aware of this, so thanks for the link.

According to the Microprocessor Report authors, the original Kryo core as used in the Snapdragon 820 and 821 is a from-scratch design, whereas the new Kryo 280 core as used in the Snapdragon 835 has been derived from the Cortex-A73:

http://www.linleygroup.com/newsletters/newsletter_detail.php?num=5647

> Using an ARM core as a basis for a custom design isn't entirely unusual,
> but companies don't usually make this public.

From the above link:

"Qualcomm cut a unique deal allowing it to modify and rebrand ARM CPUs."

[ Edited by Andreas_Wolf 19.01.2017 - 23:02 ]