Broadcom: The Chipmaker You’ve Never Heard Of

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It’s become something of a truism in the realms of silicon and speculation that everyone’s talking about the shiny, obvious bits. The flashy graphics cards, the cloud-based conjuring tricks… but the real magic, as any self-respecting illusionist – or, indeed, chip designer – will tell you, lies in the supporting infrastructure. And in that regard, Broadcom is rather like the dwarven engineers who keep the gears of the world turning, quietly and efficiently, while everyone else admires the gilded clockwork.

You’ve likely encountered the whispers of Google’s Tensor Processing Units – the TPUs, as the initiates call them.1 These are, you see, Google’s attempt to build something that doesn’t rely entirely on the, shall we say, dominant forces in the graphics processing unit market. A noble effort, certainly. But what the breathless pronouncements from the tech scribes conveniently omit is that Google doesn’t actually make these things, not entirely. They have a partner, a rather crucial one, and that partner is Broadcom. A fact that strikes me as… well, let’s just say the market has a peculiar habit of overlooking the folks who actually build things.

So, why might this be one of those ‘underappreciated’ stocks that seasoned portfolio diversifiers might consider? Let’s delve a little deeper, shall we?

Howdy, Partner (and a Bit of Magic)

Google and Broadcom’s current iteration of the TPU – the Ironwood, a name that evokes images of ancient forests and implacable efficiency – is, as the saying goes, a collaborative effort. Google provides the… let’s call it the ‘conceptual blueprint’, the dream of the silicon. Broadcom, however, is the one who translates that dream into reality, taking the specifications and crafting them into a functioning chip. It’s a bit like commissioning a wizard to build a magical artifact – you might have the idea, but you need someone who understands the intricacies of spellcasting – or, in this case, semiconductor fabrication. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, of course, handles the final act, the actual forging of the silicon, but the core design, the essence of the chip, is Broadcom’s.

And Google isn’t alone in seeking Broadcom’s expertise. They also design custom chips for Anthropic, the creators of Claude, a conversational AI that, rumour has it, can hold a surprisingly coherent argument about the merits of different types of cheese.2 Last year, it emerged that the mysterious $10 billion order for TPUs was, in fact, from Anthropic. A few months later, another $11 billion order arrived. This is, you see, a significant investment in computing capacity – Anthropic aims to add a million TPU chips over the next year, a move that will undoubtedly benefit Broadcom.

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Designer Chips, Fantastic Growth (and a Healthy Dose of Reality)

Now, let’s talk numbers. Broadcom’s Q1 2026 results, released on March 4th, revealed that their AI revenue more than doubled, increasing by a rather impressive 106% to $8.4 billion. Total revenue for the quarter reached $19.31 billion, a 29% increase year-over-year. Diluted earnings per share came in at $1.50, up 32% from Q1 2024. And, perhaps most importantly, they boast a net profit margin of 36.57% and a respectable debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83.

In a world obsessed with hype and speculation, these are, dare I say, solid numbers. It’s not about magical unicorns and overnight riches; it’s about consistent growth, efficient operations, and a strategic position in a rapidly expanding market. It’s a bit like building a well-constructed bridge – it might not be glamorous, but it’s essential for getting things done. So, if you’re looking for an under-the-radar AI play, one that’s built on a foundation of substance rather than speculation, Broadcom might just be worth a closer look.

1 The TPU, or Tensor Processing Unit, is a custom-developed AI accelerator application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) developed by Google. It’s essentially a brain for machines, designed to accelerate machine learning tasks. Don’t ask it about the meaning of life, though. It gets rather testy.
2 Rumours persist that Claude’s fondness for discussing dairy products stems from a coding error involving a particularly enthusiastic programmer and a cheese-themed database.

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2026-03-23 23:42