Apple has never delivered a chip that has outperformed x86. I wouldn’t get your hopes up that they will do it now. What they will deliver is reasonable performance with decent battery life. However, this thread isn’t about Apple, it is about Intel, or more specifically, their fabs.
If I were Intel, I would consider opening things up to others. It would require additional investment, but it would help them increase capacity and decrease the dependence on their CPUs for volume and profitability.
I guess there is still someone around here not aware of the incredible gap in IPC and performance/power between Apple and the rest of the industry.