Apple Inc. is in talks to acquire Intel Corp.’s modem business, according to an anonymously-sourced report by the Information. Intel’s modem business has been located in Germany since the company acquired Infineon in 2011.
The news comes less than two months after San Diego-based semiconductor company Qualcomm Inc. (Nasdaq: QCOM) and Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) settled more than 80 lawsuits between the two companies. Shortly after, Intel (Nasdaq: INTC) announced it would exit its 5G modem business, meaning it would no longer make the chips that would connect Apple’s smartphones to a 5G mobile network.
Apple had recently been rumored to have an interest in making its own modems. The company already develops some of its processors in house, but has always sourced modems from other companies, such as Infineon, Qualcomm, and more recently, Intel. With the settlement, Apple and Qualcomm signed a six-year licensing and supply agreement, though details have been sparse.
Apple is also opening a new, 1,200-person campus in San Diego, where it could tap into the local talent pool of hardware engineers. The Cupertino-based company has been posting jobs for modem engineers and software engineers, though it hasn’t shared specifics about the new site.
