ARM, the dominant force in mobile processor intellectual property, is in a particularly strange phase of its history. The planned IPO of the firm by Japanese parent Softbank seems to have been delayed by the economic crisis, beyond the first quarter of 2023. And it is engaged in a legal battle with one of its biggest licensee customers, Qualcomm. The latest twist came last week, in the middle of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Summit in Hawaii, at which the US chip giant launched the latest flagship in its processor range, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. This, of course, is based on cores designed by ARM, though Qualcomm has a rare and expensive architectural licence, that enables it to build its own enhancements…