In this 45-minutes talk we will analyze the underlying methodologies that are used to design these extremely complex devices. We will start by investigating the surprising differences between the “brains” of the Apple iPhone Xs and the Samsung Galaxy S10+ flagship smartphones. We will also describe the interesting machine learning hardware of Tesla’s latest “Full Self Driving” chip. The layouts of these chips do not only reveal their functionality, they also give clues on their physical design methodology. Such an IC design flow consists of hundreds of algorithmic steps that gradually transform a functional description into the actual working circuit. The proper placement and routing of billions of components on a fingernail-sized IC is key in controlling cost, performance, reliability and power consumption. We will discuss how these conflicting objectives are best addressed.