diff --git a/.github/ci/universal_matrix.json b/.github/ci/universal_matrix.json
index f522cf19a..794b6384a 100644
--- a/.github/ci/universal_matrix.json
+++ b/.github/ci/universal_matrix.json
@@ -1,18 +1,42 @@
 {
-  "config": [
+  "include": [
     {
-      "name": "Ubuntu 22.04 GCC Universal",
-      "os": "ubuntu-22.04",
-      "simple_name": "linux",
-      "archive_ext": "tar.gz"
+      "config": {
+        "name": "Ubuntu 22.04 GCC Universal",
+        "os": "ubuntu-22.04",
+        "simple_name": "linux",
+        "archive_ext": "tar.gz"
+      },
+      "binaries": "x86-64-universal"
     },
     {
-      "name": "Windows 2022 Mingw-w64 GCC Universal",
-      "os": "windows-2022",
-      "simple_name": "windows",
-      "ext": ".exe",
-      "archive_ext": "zip"
+      "config": {
+        "name": "Windows 2022 Mingw-w64 GCC Universal",
+        "os": "windows-2022",
+        "simple_name": "windows",
+        "ext": ".exe",
+        "archive_ext": "zip"
+      },
+      "binaries": "x86-64-universal"
+    },
+    {
+      "config": {
+        "name": "Ubuntu 22.04 GCC Universal arm64",
+        "os": "ubuntu-22.04-arm",
+        "simple_name": "linux",
+        "archive_ext": "tar.gz"
+      },
+      "binaries": "arm64-universal"
+    },
+    {
+      "config": {
+        "name": "Windows 11 Clang Universal arm64",
+        "os": "windows-11-arm",
+        "simple_name": "windows",
+        "ext": ".exe",
+        "archive_ext": "zip"
+      },
+      "binaries": "arm64-universal"
     }
-  ],
-  "binaries": ["x86-64-universal"]
+  ]
 }
diff --git a/.github/workflows/universal_compilation.yml b/.github/workflows/universal_compilation.yml
index aee36d8a3..86eaf49bf 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/universal_compilation.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/universal_compilation.yml
@@ -44,10 +44,8 @@ jobs:
       - name: Check arch selection under SDE
         run: ./scripts/check_universal.sh ./stockfish-linux-x86-64-universal "$SDE_DIR/sde" "$benchref"
 
-      - name: Remove non src files
-        run: |
-          rm -fR src/temp_builds
-          git -C src clean -fx
+      - name: Remove non-src files
+        run: git clean -fx -- src
 
       - name: Upload artifact for (pre)-release
         uses: actions/upload-artifact@043fb46d1a93c77aae656e7c1c64a875d1fc6a0a # v7.0.1
@@ -103,10 +101,8 @@ jobs:
       - name: Check arch selection under SDE
         run: ./scripts/check_universal.sh ./stockfish-windows-x86-64-universal.exe "$SDE_DIR/sde" "$benchref"
 
-      - name: Remove non src files
-        run: |
-          rm -fR src/temp_builds
-          git -C src clean -fx
+      - name: Remove non-src files
+        run: git clean -fx -- src
 
       - name: Upload artifact for (pre)-release
         uses: actions/upload-artifact@043fb46d1a93c77aae656e7c1c64a875d1fc6a0a # v7.0.1
@@ -116,3 +112,108 @@ jobs:
              .
              !.git
              !.output
+
+  UniversalLinuxARM64:
+    name: Linux arm64
+    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04-arm
+    defaults:
+      run:
+        shell: bash
+    steps:
+      - uses: actions/checkout@de0fac2e4500dabe0009e67214ff5f5447ce83dd # v6.0.2
+        with:
+          persist-credentials: false
+          fetch-depth: 0
+
+      - name: Install GCC 15
+        uses: egor-tensin/setup-gcc@a2861a8b8538f49cf2850980acccf6b05a1b2ae4 # v2.0
+        with:
+          version: 15
+
+      - name: Install qemu-user
+        run: |
+          sudo apt-get update
+          sudo apt-get install -y qemu-user
+
+      - name: Build universal binary
+        run: make -j4 -C src ARCH=armv8-universal profile-build
+
+      - name: Strip binary
+        run: strip src/stockfish
+
+      - name: Rename binary
+        run: mv src/stockfish stockfish-linux-arm64-universal
+
+      - name: Extract the bench number from the commit history
+        run: |
+          for hash in $(git rev-list -100 HEAD); do
+            benchref=$(git show -s $hash | tac | grep -m 1 -o -x '[[:space:]]*\b[Bb]ench[ :]\+[1-9][0-9]\{5,7\}\b[[:space:]]*' | sed 's/[^0-9]//g') && break || true
+          done
+          [[ -n "$benchref" ]] && echo "benchref=$benchref" >> $GITHUB_ENV && echo "From commit: $hash" && echo "Reference bench: $benchref" || echo "No bench found"
+
+      - name: Check arch selection under qemu
+        run: ./scripts/check_universal_arm.sh ./stockfish-linux-arm64-universal "$benchref"
+
+      - name: Remove non-src files
+        run: git clean -fx -- src
+
+      - name: Upload artifact for (pre)-release
+        uses: actions/upload-artifact@043fb46d1a93c77aae656e7c1c64a875d1fc6a0a # v7.0.1
+        with:
+          name: linux arm64-universal
+          path: |
+             .
+             !.git
+             !.output
+
+  UniversalWindowsARM64:
+    name: Windows arm64
+    runs-on: windows-11-arm
+    defaults:
+      run:
+        shell: msys2 {0}
+    steps:
+      - uses: actions/checkout@de0fac2e4500dabe0009e67214ff5f5447ce83dd # v6.0.2
+        with:
+          persist-credentials: false
+          fetch-depth: 0
+
+      - name: Setup msys and install required packages
+        uses: msys2/setup-msys2@e9898307ac31d1a803454791be09ab9973336e1c # v2.31.1
+        with:
+          msystem: clangarm64
+          install: mingw-w64-clang-aarch64-clang make git zip
+
+      - name: Build universal binary
+        run: make -j4 -C src ARCH=armv8-universal profile-build COMP=clang COMPCXX=clang++
+
+      - name: Strip binary
+        run: strip src/stockfish.exe
+
+      - name: Extract the bench number from the commit history
+        run: |
+          for hash in $(git rev-list -100 HEAD); do
+            benchref=$(git show -s $hash | tac | grep -m 1 -o -x '[[:space:]]*\b[Bb]ench[ :]\+[1-9][0-9]\{5,7\}\b[[:space:]]*' | sed 's/[^0-9]//g') && break || true
+          done
+          [[ -n "$benchref" ]] && echo "benchref=$benchref" >> $GITHUB_ENV && echo "From commit: $hash" && echo "Reference bench: $benchref" || echo "No bench found"
+
+      - name: Verify bench and compiler
+        working-directory: src
+        run: |
+          ../tests/signature.sh $benchref
+          ./stockfish compiler 2>&1 | grep -q DOTPROD || { echo "compiler output missing DOTPROD" >&2; exit 1; }
+
+      - name: Rename binary
+        run: mv src/stockfish.exe stockfish-windows-arm64-universal.exe
+
+      - name: Remove non-src files
+        run: git clean -fx -- src
+
+      - name: Upload artifact for (pre)-release
+        uses: actions/upload-artifact@043fb46d1a93c77aae656e7c1c64a875d1fc6a0a # v7.0.1
+        with:
+          name: windows arm64-universal
+          path: |
+             .
+             !.git
+             !.output
diff --git a/scripts/check_universal_arm.sh b/scripts/check_universal_arm.sh
new file mode 100755
index 000000000..7cef94a53
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/check_universal_arm.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,58 @@
+#!/bin/sh
+
+# Verify that the arm64 universal binary selects the correct per-arch build
+# under qemu-aarch64 emulation for a range of target CPUs.
+#
+# Usage: check_universal_arm.sh STOCKFISH_EXE EXPECTED_BENCH
+
+set -eu
+
+if [ $# -ne 2 ]; then
+    echo "Usage: $0 STOCKFISH_EXE EXPECTED_BENCH" >&2
+    exit 2
+fi
+
+STOCKFISH_EXE=$1
+EXPECTED_BENCH=$2
+
+PAIRS="
+cortex-a53:armv8
+max:armv8-dotprod
+"
+
+BINARY_SIZE=$(wc -c < "$STOCKFISH_EXE")
+MAX_SIZE=$((150 * 1024 * 1024))
+if [ "$BINARY_SIZE" -gt "$MAX_SIZE" ]; then
+    printf 'check_universal_arm.sh: binary size %d bytes exceeds 150 MB limit\n' "$BINARY_SIZE" >&2
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+FAIL=0
+for pair in $PAIRS; do
+    cpu=${pair%%:*}
+    expected_compiler=${pair##*:}
+    compiler_out=$(qemu-aarch64 -cpu "$cpu" -- "$STOCKFISH_EXE" compiler 2>&1 || true)
+    bench_out=$(qemu-aarch64 -cpu "$cpu" -- "$STOCKFISH_EXE" bench 2>&1 || true)
+    actual_compiler=$(printf '%s\n' "$compiler_out" | awk -F: '/Compilation architecture/ {
+        sub(/^[[:space:]]+/, "", $2); sub(/[[:space:]]+$/, "", $2); print $2; exit
+    }')
+    actual_bench=$(printf '%s\n' "$bench_out" | awk -F: '/Nodes searched/ {
+        sub(/^[[:space:]]+/, "", $2); sub(/[[:space:]]+$/, "", $2); print $2; exit
+    }')
+    if [ "$actual_compiler" != "$expected_compiler" ] || [ "$actual_bench" != "$EXPECTED_BENCH" ]; then
+        printf '===== CPU %s output (expected %s/%s, got %s/%s) =====\n' \
+            "$cpu" "$expected_compiler" "$EXPECTED_BENCH" "${actual_compiler:--}" "$actual_bench" >&2
+        printf 'Full "compiler" output: %s\n' "$compiler_out"
+        printf 'Full "bench" output: %s\n' "$bench_out"
+        FAIL=1
+    else
+        printf 'CPU %s ok\n' "$cpu" >&2
+    fi
+done
+
+if [ "$FAIL" != 0 ]; then
+    echo "check_universal_arm.sh: failed"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+echo "check_universal_arm.sh: Good! Universal binary has correct hardware detection."
diff --git a/src/Makefile b/src/Makefile
index 1794d9ba9..2d3835311 100644
--- a/src/Makefile
+++ b/src/Makefile
@@ -74,7 +74,7 @@ SRCS = benchmark.cpp bitboard.cpp evaluate.cpp main.cpp \
 	nnue/features/half_ka_v2_hm.cpp nnue/features/full_threats.cpp \
 	engine.cpp score.cpp memory.cpp
 
-OTHER_SRCS = universal/entry_x86.cpp universal/nnue_embed.cpp
+OTHER_SRCS = universal/entry_x86.cpp universal/entry_arm64.cpp universal/nnue_embed.cpp
 
 HEADERS = benchmark.h bitboard.h evaluate.h misc.h movegen.h movepick.h history.h \
 		nnue/nnue_misc.h nnue/features/half_ka_v2_hm.h nnue/features/full_threats.h \
@@ -148,14 +148,14 @@ ifeq ($(ARCH), $(filter $(ARCH), \
                  x86-64-universal x86-64-avx512icl x86-64-vnni512 x86-64-avx512 x86-64-avxvnni \
                  x86-64-bmi2 x86-64-avx2 x86-64-sse41-popcnt x86-64-modern x86-64-ssse3 x86-64-sse3-popcnt \
                  x86-64 x86-32-sse41-popcnt x86-32-sse2 x86-32 ppc-64 ppc-64-altivec ppc-64-vsx ppc-32 e2k \
-                 armv7 armv7-neon armv8 armv8-dotprod apple-silicon general-64 general-32 riscv64 \
+                 armv7 armv7-neon armv8 armv8-dotprod armv8-universal apple-silicon general-64 general-32 riscv64 \
                  loongarch64 loongarch64-lsx loongarch64-lasx))
    SUPPORTED_ARCH=true
 else
    SUPPORTED_ARCH=false
 endif
 
-ifeq ($(ARCH), x86-64-universal)
+ifneq (,$(findstring universal,$(ARCH)))
    UNIVERSAL_BUILD=true
 else
    UNIVERSAL_BUILD=false
@@ -976,6 +976,7 @@ help:
 	echo "ppc-32                  > PPC 32-bit" && \
 	echo "armv7                   > ARMv7 32-bit" && \
 	echo "armv7-neon              > ARMv7 32-bit with popcnt and neon" && \
+	echo "armv8-universal         > ARMv8 64-bit with automatic runtime selection of the best architecture" && \
 	echo "armv8                   > ARMv8 64-bit with popcnt and neon" && \
 	echo "armv8-dotprod           > ARMv8 64-bit with popcnt, neon and dot product support" && \
 	echo "e2k                     > Elbrus 2000" && \
@@ -1046,13 +1047,24 @@ profile-build: net config-sanity objclean profileclean
 endif
 
 ifeq ($(comp), clang)
-LTO_OBJ_SUFFIX := .lto.o
-SAVE_TEMPS := -Wl,--save-temps
+  LTO_OBJ_SUFFIX := .lto.o
+  ifeq ($(target_windows),yes)
+    SAVE_TEMPS := -Wl,--lto-emit-asm  # ld.lld doesn't have a save temps functionality
+    use_lto_emit_asm := yes
+  else
+    SAVE_TEMPS := -Wl,--save-temps
+  endif
 else
-LTO_OBJ_SUFFIX := .ltrans0.ltrans.o
-SAVE_TEMPS := -save-temps
+  LTO_OBJ_SUFFIX := .ltrans0.ltrans.o
+  SAVE_TEMPS     := -save-temps
 endif
 
+ifeq ($(arch),armv8)
+  ASM_FLAGS := -mcpu=neoverse-v2
+endif
+
+MODNAME := $(subst -,_,$(notdir $(CURDIR)))
+
 universal-object-pgo: objclean profileclean universalclean
 	@echo ""
 	@echo "Step 1/4. Building instrumented executable ..."
@@ -1066,12 +1078,25 @@ universal-object-pgo: objclean profileclean universalclean
 	$(MAKE) ARCH=$(ARCH) COMP=$(COMP) objclean
 	$(MAKE) ARCH=$(ARCH) COMP=$(COMP) ENV_LDFLAGS='$(SAVE_TEMPS) $(NNUE_EMBED_OBJ)' $(profile_use)
 	@echo ""
+ifeq ($(use_lto_emit_asm),yes)
+	@echo "Step 4/4. Renaming ctors and extracting LTO-optimized relocatable object ..."
+	awk -v MODNAME=$(MODNAME) -f ../../universal/rewrite_asm_sections.awk *.lto.s > renamed.s
+# -mcpu=neoverse-v2 (or another CPU supporting dotprod) is required for clang
+# to not complain when assembling
+	$(CXX) -c renamed.s -o stockfish.o $(ASM_FLAGS)
+else
 	@echo "Step 4/4. Extracting LTO-optimized relocatable object ..."
 	cp "$(basename $(EXE))$(LTO_OBJ_SUFFIX)" stockfish.o
+endif
 
 universal-object-nopgo: objclean universalclean
 	$(MAKE) ARCH=$(ARCH) COMP=$(COMP) ENV_LDFLAGS='$(SAVE_TEMPS) $(NNUE_EMBED_OBJ)' all
+ifeq ($(use_lto_emit_asm),yes)
+	awk -v MODNAME=$(MODNAME) -f ../../universal/rewrite_asm_sections.awk *.lto.s > renamed.s
+	$(CXX) -c renamed.s -o stockfish.o $(ASM_FLAGS)
+else
 	cp "$(basename $(EXE))$(LTO_OBJ_SUFFIX)" stockfish.o
+endif
 
 strip:
 	$(STRIP) $(EXE)
@@ -1249,39 +1274,62 @@ endif
 # Usage:
 #   make -j ARCH=x86-64-universal build          # non-PGO
 #   make -j ARCH=x86-64-universal profile-build  # PGO (use RUN_PREFIX for intel SDE)
+#   make -j ARCH=armv8-universal build
 
 TEMP_DIR             := $(CURDIR)/temp_builds
 UNIVERSAL_EXE        := $(CURDIR)/$(EXE)
 
 ifeq ($(UNIVERSAL_BUILD),true)
 
-UNIVERSAL_ARCHES := x86-64 x86-64-sse41-popcnt x86-64-avx2 x86-64-bmi2 \
-                    x86-64-avxvnni x86-64-avx512 x86-64-vnni512 x86-64-avx512icl
-
-# GCC 15+ required for #embed
-GCC_MAJOR := $(shell $(CXX) -dumpversion 2>/dev/null | cut -d. -f1)
-ifneq ($(shell test "$(GCC_MAJOR)" -ge 15 2>/dev/null && echo ok),ok)
-$(error Universal build needs GCC 15+ for \#embed support; CXX=$(CXX) reports version '$(GCC_MAJOR)')
+# GCC 15+ or Clang 19+ required for #embed
+CXX_MAJOR    := $(shell $(CXX) -dumpversion 2>/dev/null | cut -d. -f1)
+CXX_IS_CLANG := $(shell $(CXX) --version 2>/dev/null | head -1 | grep -ic clang)
+ifeq ($(CXX_IS_CLANG),0)
+  EMBED_MIN  := 15
+  EMBED_NAME := GCC
+else
+  EMBED_MIN  := 19
+  EMBED_NAME := Clang
+endif
+ifneq ($(shell test "$(CXX_MAJOR)" -ge "$(EMBED_MIN)" 2>/dev/null && echo ok),ok)
+$(error Universal build needs $(EMBED_NAME) $(EMBED_MIN)+ for \#embed support; CXX=$(CXX) reports version '$(CXX_MAJOR)')
 endif
 
 UNIVERSAL_SRC_DIR    := $(CURDIR)/universal
 NNUE_EMBED_OBJ       := $(TEMP_DIR)/nnue_embed.o
-UNIVERSAL_ENTRY_OBJ  := $(TEMP_DIR)/entry_x86.o
 NET_SENTINEL         := $(TEMP_DIR)/.net-done
 
+ifeq ($(arch),x86_64)
+  UNIVERSAL_ARCHES := x86-64 x86-64-sse41-popcnt x86-64-avx2 x86-64-bmi2 \
+                      x86-64-avxvnni x86-64-avx512 x86-64-vnni512 x86-64-avx512icl
+  UNIVERSAL_ENTRY_OBJ  := $(TEMP_DIR)/entry_x86.o
+  UNIVERSAL_ENTRY_SRC  := $(UNIVERSAL_SRC_DIR)/entry_x86.cpp
+  BASELINE_ARCH := x86-64
+else
+  UNIVERSAL_ARCHES := armv8 armv8-dotprod
+  UNIVERSAL_ENTRY_OBJ  := $(TEMP_DIR)/entry_arm64.o
+  UNIVERSAL_ENTRY_SRC  := $(UNIVERSAL_SRC_DIR)/entry_arm64.cpp
+  BASELINE_ARCH := armv8
+endif
+
 # Top-level tracked items in src/ (directories and files)
 TRACKED_TOP := $(sort $(foreach f,$(SRCS) $(HEADERS) Makefile incbin,$(firstword $(subst /, ,$(f)))))
 
-# Baseline x86-64 must come first in the final link (Windows --allow-multiple-definition
+# Baseline build must come first in the final link (Windows --allow-multiple-definition
 # uses the first copy of inline duplicates)
-ARCH_OBJS := $(TEMP_DIR)/x86-64/stockfish.o \
-             $(patsubst %,$(TEMP_DIR)/%/stockfish.o,$(filter-out x86-64,$(UNIVERSAL_ARCHES)))
+ARCH_OBJS := $(TEMP_DIR)/$(BASELINE_ARCH)/stockfish.o \
+             $(patsubst %,$(TEMP_DIR)/%/stockfish.o,$(filter-out $(BASELINE_ARCH),$(UNIVERSAL_ARCHES)))
+
+UNIVERSAL_FINAL_FLAGS := -fno-exceptions -Os \
+			 -Wno-c++26-extensions -Wno-c23-extensions # suppress #embed warnings
 
-UNIVERSAL_FINAL_FLAGS := -fno-exceptions -Os -static-libstdc++ -static-libgcc -Wno-c++26-extensions
 ifeq ($(KERNEL),Linux)
-    UNIVERSAL_FINAL_FLAGS += -lrt -lpthread
-else
-    UNIVERSAL_FINAL_FLAGS += -Wl,--allow-multiple-definition -static
+  UNIVERSAL_FINAL_FLAGS += -static-libstdc++ -static-libgcc -lrt -lpthread
+else    # windows
+  UNIVERSAL_FINAL_FLAGS += -Wl,--allow-multiple-definition -static
+  ifeq ($(COMP),clang)
+    UNIVERSAL_FINAL_FLAGS += -lpthread
+  endif
 endif
 
 # $(call arch-namespace,x86-64-avx2) => Stockfish_x86_64_avx2
@@ -1290,10 +1338,19 @@ arch-namespace  = Stockfish_$(call arch-suffix,$(1))
 # Itanium ABI mangled name for Stockfish_<suffix>::main(int, char**)
 arch-mangled    = _ZN$(shell printf %s '$(call arch-namespace,$(1))' | wc -c)$(call arch-namespace,$(1))4mainEiPPc
 
+# lld-link, used on Windows+clang, doesn't accept --defsym, so
+# we define main directly in main.cpp instead and delete it later.
+ifeq ($(target_windows)+$(COMP),yes+clang)
+  arch-defmain = -DUNIVERSAL_NEEDS_MAIN_SHIM
+else
+  arch-defmain = -Wl,--defsym=main=$(call arch-mangled,$(1))
+endif
+
 arch-cxxflags   = --embed-dir=$(CURDIR) -DStockfish=$(call arch-namespace,$(1)) -DUNIVERSAL_BINARY \
-                  -Wl,--defsym=main=$(call arch-mangled,$(1)) -Wno-c++26-extensions
+                  $(call arch-defmain,$(1)) -Wno-c++26-extensions -Wno-c23-extensions
 
 UOBJ_TGT ?= universal-object-pgo
+OBJCOPY  ?= objcopy
 
 .PHONY: build profile-build universal-clean
 build:         UOBJ_TGT := universal-object-nopgo
@@ -1312,7 +1369,7 @@ $(NET_SENTINEL): | $(TEMP_DIR)
 $(NNUE_EMBED_OBJ): $(UNIVERSAL_SRC_DIR)/nnue_embed.cpp $(NET_SENTINEL) | $(TEMP_DIR)
 	$(CXX) -O2 -Wno-c++26-extensions --embed-dir=$(CURDIR) -c $< -o $@
 
-$(UNIVERSAL_ENTRY_OBJ): $(UNIVERSAL_SRC_DIR)/entry_x86.cpp | $(TEMP_DIR)
+$(UNIVERSAL_ENTRY_OBJ): $(UNIVERSAL_ENTRY_SRC) | $(TEMP_DIR)
 	$(CXX) -O2 -c $< -o $@
 
 # Symlink tracked top-level items from src/ into temp_builds/<arch>/.
@@ -1332,12 +1389,17 @@ $(TEMP_DIR)/%/stockfish.o: $(TEMP_DIR)/%/.setup $(NNUE_EMBED_OBJ) $(NET_SENTINEL
 	        NNUE_EMBED_OBJ=$(NNUE_EMBED_OBJ)
 # Drop COMDAT groups; clang LTO leaves them around internalized LOCAL
 # template instantiations which causes problems at the final link
-	objcopy -R .group $@
+	$(OBJCOPY) -R .group $@
+ifeq ($(use_lto_emit_asm),yes)
+# Delete per-arch main shim
+	$(OBJCOPY) -N main $@
+else
 # Rename .init_array (Linux) or .ctors (Windows) so we can manually invoke them
-	objcopy --rename-section .init_array=$(call arch-suffix,$*)_init $@
-	objcopy --rename-section .ctors=$(call arch-suffix,$*)_init $@
+	$(OBJCOPY) --rename-section .init_array=$(call arch-suffix,$*)_init $@
+	$(OBJCOPY) --rename-section .ctors=$(call arch-suffix,$*)_init $@
 # Make the array inert
-	objcopy --set-section-flags $(call arch-suffix,$*)_init=alloc,data $@
+	$(OBJCOPY) --set-section-flags $(call arch-suffix,$*)_init=alloc,data $@
+endif
 
 $(UNIVERSAL_EXE): $(UNIVERSAL_ENTRY_OBJ) $(NNUE_EMBED_OBJ) $(ARCH_OBJS)
 	$(CXX) -o $@ $(UNIVERSAL_ENTRY_OBJ) $(NNUE_EMBED_OBJ) $(ARCH_OBJS) $(UNIVERSAL_FINAL_FLAGS)
diff --git a/src/main.cpp b/src/main.cpp
index fccb2f21d..6a5f6fe68 100644
--- a/src/main.cpp
+++ b/src/main.cpp
@@ -30,7 +30,9 @@ using namespace Stockfish;
 #ifdef UNIVERSAL_BINARY
 namespace Stockfish {
 
-int main(int argc, char* argv[]);
+int main(int argc, char* argv[]);  // silence 'no previous declaration'
+
+__attribute__((used)) // keep main alive
 #endif
 
 int main(int argc, char* argv[]) {
@@ -49,5 +51,9 @@ int main(int argc, char* argv[]) {
 }
 
 #ifdef UNIVERSAL_BINARY
-}
+}  // namespace Stockfish
+
+    #ifdef UNIVERSAL_NEEDS_MAIN_SHIM
+int main(int argc, char* argv[]) { return Stockfish::main(argc, argv); }
+    #endif
 #endif
diff --git a/src/universal/entry_arm64.cpp b/src/universal/entry_arm64.cpp
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..1616f1614
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/universal/entry_arm64.cpp
@@ -0,0 +1,58 @@
+#include <stdint.h>
+
+#if defined(_WIN32)
+    #include <windows.h>
+#else
+    #include <sys/auxv.h>
+    #ifndef HWCAP_ASIMDDP
+        #define HWCAP_ASIMDDP (1 << 20)
+    #endif
+#endif
+
+#define DEFINE_BUILD(x) \
+    namespace Stockfish_##x { \
+        extern int main(int argc, char* argv[]); \
+    } \
+    extern "C" void (*__start_##x##_init[])(void); \
+    extern "C" void (*__stop_##x##_init[])(void); \
+    int entry_##x(int argc, char* argv[]) { \
+        unsigned count = __stop_##x##_init - __start_##x##_init; \
+        for (unsigned i = 0; i < count; i++) \
+            __start_##x##_init[i](); \
+        return Stockfish_##x::main(argc, argv); \
+    }
+
+DEFINE_BUILD(armv8)
+DEFINE_BUILD(armv8_dotprod)
+
+struct CpuFeatures {
+    bool dotprod;
+};
+
+
+static CpuFeatures query_cpu_features() {
+#if defined(_WIN32)
+    return {
+      .dotprod = (bool) IsProcessorFeaturePresent(PF_ARM_V82_DP_INSTRUCTIONS_AVAILABLE),
+    };
+#else
+    unsigned long hwcap = getauxval(AT_HWCAP);
+    return {
+      .dotprod = (bool) (hwcap & HWCAP_ASIMDDP),
+    };
+#endif
+}
+
+
+// Selects the most capable ISA variant supported by this CPU and OS
+static int dispatch(const CpuFeatures& f, int argc, char* argv[]) {
+    if (!f.dotprod)
+        return entry_armv8(argc, argv);
+
+    return entry_armv8_dotprod(argc, argv);
+}
+
+int main(int argc, char* argv[]) {
+    CpuFeatures features = query_cpu_features();
+    return dispatch(features, argc, argv);
+}
diff --git a/src/universal/rewrite_asm_sections.awk b/src/universal/rewrite_asm_sections.awk
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..2b34fe5e6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/universal/rewrite_asm_sections.awk
@@ -0,0 +1,67 @@
+# This is used if the universal binary is compiled on clang+Windows.
+# Usage (avx2 example):
+#   awk -v MODNAME=x86_64_avx2 -f rewrite_asm_sections.awk stockfish.exe.lto.s > renamed.s
+#
+# The relevant output from --lto-emit-asm looks like:
+#  ...
+#    .section    .ctors,"dw",associative,_ZN21Stockfish_x86_64_avx217SYSTEM_THREADS_NBE,unique,0
+#    .p2align    3, 0x0
+#    .quad    __cxx_global_var_init
+#    .section    .ctors,"a",unique,0
+#    .p2align    3, 0x0
+#    .quad    _GLOBAL__sub_I_benchmark.cpp
+#    .quad    _GLOBAL__sub_I_evaluate.cpp
+#  ...
+#    .quad    _GLOBAL__sub_I_engine.cpp
+#    .quad    _GLOBAL__sub_I_score.cpp
+# 
+#    .section    .bss$_ZN21Stockfish_x86_64_avx2L26STARTUP_PROCESSOR_AFFINITYE,"bw",one_only,_ZN21Stockfish_x86_64_avx2L26STARTUP_PROCESSOR_AFFINITYE,unique,570
+#  ...
+# 
+# We want to consolidate everything into a single section named x86_64_avx2_init, and insert
+# symbols __start_x86_64_avx2_init/__stop_x86_64_avx2_init for entry_x86.cpp to use.
+# (On ELF these symbols are implicitly defined, so naming it this way keeps the universal
+# entry point consistent.)
+
+BEGIN {
+    in_ctors = 0
+}
+
+# Match any .section line containing .ctors
+/^[[:space:]]*\.section[[:space:]].*\.ctors/ {
+
+    # First .ctors section, emit start symbol
+    if (!in_ctors) {
+        in_ctors = 1
+        section = MODNAME "_init"
+
+        printf "\t.section\t%s,\"a\"\n", section
+        printf "\t.globl\t__start_%s\n", section
+        printf "__start_%s:\n", section
+    }
+
+    # Suppress all original .ctors section directives
+    next
+}
+
+# First non-.ctors .section after ctors block, emit stop symbol
+in_ctors && /^[[:space:]]*\.section/ {
+    section = MODNAME "_init"
+
+    printf "\t.globl\t__stop_%s\n", section
+    printf "__stop_%s:\n", section
+
+    in_ctors = 0
+}
+
+{
+    print
+}
+
+END {
+    if (in_ctors) {
+        section = MODNAME "_init"
+        printf "\t.globl\t__stop_%s\n", section
+        printf "__stop_%s:\n", section
+    }
+}