I like the idea behind RISC-V's open architecture but I had a question. Does it do or even try to do anything about the cloud of uncertainty surrounding Intel ME and the AMD equivalent in x86?
Intel ME is a co-processor that runs at the same time as the main processor, it is not related to the instruction set.
To answer your question: Intel ME is a problem that happens on an higher level than the document that defines instruction set.
Just a thought though, it could really go any way. The nice thing though, is that you'll have more than two vendors, which means that the niche of PSP/ME paranoids may be large enough to address for a smaller designer, or through a limited run of licensed design (like SiFive's).
It depends entirely on features and performance. Like Intel and arm chips have a 10x range of cost.
A lot of people are hoping that someone will put in the work to bring the architecture up to speeds competitive with i7 and mass-manufacture it, despite being legally cloneable.
So, the devices can't just be "cloned" without the RTL/etc for the design, and even if someone got some masks or the RTL via an illicit source it would still be copyrighted enough to keep them from selling the clones..
Of course if "clone" means you spend hundreds of millions of dollars building your own competitive core, then yes that is still allowed..
It’s a critically important question and it requires active grassroots involvement to make sure that we don’t end up with a mere clone of ME, or worse a “better ME.”