Qualcomm interested in acquiring rival chip maker Intel: Reports

San Francisco, Sep 21: Chip giant Qualcomm has reportedly approached rival semiconductor firm Intel about the possibility of acquiring it but has not made any official offer yet. Multiple reports on Saturday claimed that Qualcomm has been considering a "full takeover" of US semiconductor manufacturer. A report in The Wall Street Journal first revealed that although a deal is “far from certain,” the two companies have held talks on the subject. Both Qualcomm and Intel declined to comment on the reports.

With a market capitalisation of about $93 billion, Intel has seen its stock nosedive more than 40 per cent over the last year. On the other hand, Qualcomm has witnessed its shares rise 55 per cent, with a market value of $169 billion. In 2020, Intel lost its big client Apple as the iPhone maker transitioned from Macs to its own silicon chips built on the ARM architecture. Although the US company still dominates the PC market with its chips, the original equipment makers are fast adopting the ARM architecture.

Compared to Intel x86, the ARM architecture is more efficient when it comes to energy consumption and thermals. The New York Times said “Qualcomm has not yet made an official offer for Intel.” Meanwhile, Intel is laying off over 15,000 employees and will stop ‘non-essential work’. Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger has said that the company would stop all non-essential work and has since announced it will spin off its chipmaking business.

Intel may lose its third spot in terms of sales for the first time in the third quarter (Q3) to SK hynix, a major South Korean chipmaker, according to market analyst Omdia. US artificial intelligence (AI) chip giant Nvidia is forecast to keep its top spot with quarterly sales of $28.1 billion, and Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics its No. 2 spot with record quarterly sales of $21.7 billion.