IITM will start with tapeout of microcontroller class(C-class) CPU. But IITM is designing mobile, server and HPC class CPUs.

http://rise.cse.iitm.ac.in/shakti.html

I am not sure where we have indicated that the focus is only on IoT class cores. The E and C class are aimed at that segment and this segment probably will account for the vast majority of cores shipped. So they are the first ones to be shipped. The I class for example, an early version which is on-line will be a full OO core - quad issue - dual threaded.Server, HPC and vector based cores are equally important for us. The core road-map is clearly outlined on the codeline.

The comment applies to both high-end CPUs and to microcontrollers as well. Power and performance are even more critical on a microcontroller than on an high-end CPU.

And yet you yourself said:

> The CPUs you mentioned were simple micro-controllers, they were not designed for heavy processing tasks, they don't even have a branch predictor which is something fundamental to have some significant performance.

So it seems his comparison was fair, after all? Given that the article is about microcontrollers too.

Do you think ARMs don't have branch predictors or multi-level caching? Did you know some supercomputers are being designed around ARM computers? x86_64 is not king anymore.