• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

Qualcomm Said to Have Approached Intel About Takeover Bid

Joined
Sep 6, 2013
Messages
3,433 (0.83/day)
Location
Athens, Greece
System Name 3 desktop systems: Gaming / Internet / HTPC
Processor Ryzen 5 7600 / Ryzen 5 4600G / Ryzen 5 5500
Motherboard X670E Gaming Plus WiFi / MSI X470 Gaming Plus Max (1) / MSI X470 Gaming Plus Max (2)
Cooling Aigo ICE 400SE / Segotep T4 / Νoctua U12S
Memory Kingston FURY Beast 32GB DDR5 6000 / 16GB JUHOR / 32GB G.Skill RIPJAWS 3600 + Aegis 3200
Video Card(s) ASRock RX 6600 / Vega 7 integrated / Radeon RX 580
Storage NVMes, ONLY NVMes / NVMes, SATA Storage / NVMe, SATA, external storage
Display(s) Philips 43PUS8857/12 UHD TV (120Hz, HDR, FreeSync Premium) / 19'' HP monitor + BlitzWolf BW-V5
Case Sharkoon Rebel 12 / CoolerMaster Elite 361 / Xigmatek Midguard
Audio Device(s) onboard
Power Supply Chieftec 850W / Silver Power 400W / Sharkoon 650W
Mouse CoolerMaster Devastator III Plus / CoolerMaster Devastator / Logitech
Keyboard CoolerMaster Devastator III Plus / CoolerMaster Devastator / Logitech
Software Windows 10 / Windows 10&Windows 11 / Windows 10
I’m pretty sure that both intel and amd have agreements signed in case something like this ever happened.
AMD could go with Qualcomm in a court about AMD's and Intel's agreements that get violated by Qualcomm, but by the time the court comes to a conclusion, AMD could be crippled. AMD suffered years of anticompetitive tactics from Intel and never really get any reasonable compensation for that.

I understand that, all in the name of backwards compatibility, but how much of the old stuff is used on a modern computer?
You can't remove the first floor from a building, because you build a second one over it.
 
Joined
May 27, 2017
Messages
34 (0.01/day)
infact, Qualcomm could pass anti-trust approval, but, really, HUAWEI could be interested more in buying the whole intel business if if there were no sanctions...........
 
Joined
May 20, 2020
Messages
1,389 (0.82/day)
Do it. Intel has lost their way long ago (when Apple left it to their own devices).
 
Joined
Mar 12, 2009
Messages
1,145 (0.20/day)
Location
SCOTLAND!
System Name Machine XX
Processor Ryzen 7600
Motherboard MSI X670E GAMING PLUS
Cooling 120mm heatsink
Memory 32GB DDR5 6000 CL30
Video Card(s) RX5700XT 8Gb
Storage 280GB Optane 900p
Display(s) 19" + 23" + 17"
Case ATX
Audio Device(s) Soundblaster Z
Power Supply 800W
Software Windows 11
isnt blackrock the group with its own private army?
 
Joined
Oct 3, 2019
Messages
157 (0.08/day)
Processor Ryzen 3600
Motherboard MSI X470 Gaming Plus Max
Cooling stock crap AMD wraith cooler
Memory Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro 16GB DDR4-3200MHz
Video Card(s) Sapphire Nitro RX580 8GBs
Storage Adata Gammix S11 Pro 1TB nvme
Case Corsair Caribide Air 540
I know nVidia is making a killing with all the AI bubble right now, but I can't help wonder whether intel could be saved by licensing x86 to nVidia for a great lot of money. The AI bubble might deflate (even if it doesn't completely bust like cryptomining), nvidia doesn't seem like the company to put all their eggs in one basket and not care about a valuable x86 license. Or is AMD's ownership of x64 a sticking point in such a scenario?

I also don't quite see how nvidia buying intel would be the same situation as their failed attempt to purchase ARM. It seems like a different situation to me? ARM has been licensing its ISA to a whole raft of companies and nvidia is well known for its business practices, so there was the fear that nvidia would attempt to create a monopoly and lock down the architecture. There exists no such fear with the X86 ISA because it is already locked down. Intel doesn't license it to anyone apart from the standing agreements with AMD. As long as nvidia honored the licensing agreements with AMD (which they would most probably be forced to do, considering these are cross-licensing agreements, and involve AMD's 64-bit extensions, too), it seems to me that an intel buyout by nvidia would face less scrutiny than the arm buyout attempt? What am I missing here?
 
Last edited:
Joined
May 3, 2019
Messages
2,148 (1.04/day)
System Name BigRed
Processor I7 12700k
Motherboard Asus Rog Strix z690-A WiFi D4
Cooling Noctua D15S chromax black/MX6
Memory TEAM GROUP 32GB DDR4 4000C16 B die
Video Card(s) MSI RTX 3080 Gaming Trio X 10GB
Storage M.2 drives WD SN850X 1TB 4x4 BOOT/WD SN850X 4TB 4x4 STEAM/USB3 4TB OTHER
Display(s) Dell s3422dwg 34" 3440x1440p 144hz ultrawide
Case Corsair 7000D
Audio Device(s) Logitech Z5450/KEF uniQ speakers/Bowers and Wilkins P7 Headphones
Power Supply Corsair RM850x 80% gold
Mouse Logitech G604 lightspeed wireless
Keyboard Logitech G915 TKL lightspeed wireless
Software Windows 10 Pro X64
Benchmark Scores Who cares
Pretty sure intel will say NO
 
Joined
Oct 23, 2020
Messages
59 (0.04/day)
It's quite interesting that the relative market cap difference between Intel, Qualcomm and AMD is so far from their relative revenue and income numbers.
 
Joined
Dec 6, 2022
Messages
489 (0.65/day)
Location
NYC
System Name GameStation
Processor AMD R5 5600X
Motherboard Gigabyte B550
Cooling Artic Freezer II 120
Memory 16 GB
Video Card(s) Sapphire Pulse 7900 XTX
Storage 2 TB SSD
Case Cooler Master Elite 120
Qualcomm could pass anti-trust approval
They might, but with lots of stipulations.
HUAWEI could be interested more in buying the whole intel business
Many of the mentioned companies are American hence wouldn’t be that difficult to get approval, but there is no way that Huawei gets approved, regardless of sanctions since its not an American company, to begin with.

AMD could go with Qualcomm in a court about AMD's and Intel's agreements that get violated by Qualcomm,
I remember this exact scenario when AMD almost died thanks to intel illegal actions and one of the stipulations was that whoever bought AMD wouldnt get the x86 license so AMD was almost worthless to be purchased.
but by the time the court comes to a conclusion, AMD could be crippled.
AMD could ignore whichever demands Qualcomm comes up if the original agreement with Intel is not followed.
AMD suffered years of anticompetitive tactics from Intel and never really get any reasonable compensation for that.
Yes and this is why i’m so happy to even hear how badly Intel is now doing. AMD didn’t get the money they deserved but man, observing karma going wild on intel must count for something. :D
 
Joined
Jan 18, 2020
Messages
844 (0.47/day)
This news is just market manipulation to help Intel stock price? Be surprised if there's any substance to this at all. Does make me wonder about how bad this quarter is going to be for Intel though...
 
Joined
Dec 12, 2016
Messages
1,964 (0.67/day)
No, they could not.
Its highly probable that Intel spins its fabs off into another company if its not possible to buy Intel due to regulatory blocks. It’s improbable that Intel can stay profitable without major, major changes. We all need to be prepared for what’s coming.
 
Joined
Jul 5, 2013
Messages
28,359 (6.76/day)
Its highly probable that Intel spins its fabs off into another company if its not possible to buy Intel due to regulatory blocks. It’s improbable that Intel can stay profitable without major, major changes. We all need to be prepared for what’s coming.
That is doubtful as well. Intel has already separated it's fabs into a new business entity. Rumors are just that. Meritless and nonsense most of the time.
 
Joined
Jan 8, 2017
Messages
9,521 (3.27/day)
System Name Good enough
Processor AMD Ryzen R9 7900 - Alphacool Eisblock XPX Aurora Edge
Motherboard ASRock B650 Pro RS
Cooling 2x 360mm NexXxoS ST30 X-Flow, 1x 360mm NexXxoS ST30, 1x 240mm NexXxoS ST30
Memory 32GB - FURY Beast RGB 5600 Mhz
Video Card(s) Sapphire RX 7900 XT - Alphacool Eisblock Aurora
Storage 1x Kingston KC3000 1TB 1x Kingston A2000 1TB, 1x Samsung 850 EVO 250GB , 1x Samsung 860 EVO 500GB
Display(s) LG UltraGear 32GN650-B + 4K Samsung TV
Case Phanteks NV7
Power Supply GPS-750C
Qualcomm is very well embedded in the semiconductor industry, more than Intel I would say, not surprised they would want to buy them out.
 
Joined
Dec 12, 2016
Messages
1,964 (0.67/day)
That is doubtful as well. Intel has already separated it's fabs into a new business entity. Rumors are just that. Meritless and nonsense most of the time.
No. IFS is part of Intel. All monies go into one bank account. All fab expenses are paid from Intel CPU sale revenue. A single CEO (Pat) runs all of it. IFS is not separate in anyway whatsoever.

IFS is separate when it has its own CEO, has its own IPO and stock symbol, files quarterly earnings report separate from Intel and becomes a legally separate business entity.
 
Last edited:
Joined
Jul 5, 2013
Messages
28,359 (6.76/day)
No. IFS is part of Intel.
It's still a separate legal entity. So yes.
All monies go into one bank account.
Incorrect. Each are separate taxable entities and thus are required, by law, to have separate accounting and banking.
All fab expenses are paid from Intel CPU sale revenue. A single CEO (Pat) runs all of it. IFS is not separate in anyway whatsoever.

IFS is separate when it has its own CEO, has its own IPO and stock symbol, files quarterly earnings report separate from Intel and becomes a legally separate business entity.
Your understand of how corporate structuring works needs revision. It's very much more complicated than you suggest.
 
Joined
Dec 12, 2016
Messages
1,964 (0.67/day)
It's still a separate legal entity. So yes.

Incorrect. Each are separate taxable entities and thus are required, by law, to have separate accounting and banking.

Your understand of how corporate structuring works needs revision. It's very much more complicated than you suggest.
Everything you stated is incorrect. IFS is part of Intel. It is not taxed separately. I understand exactly how it works.

Intel's only reason to play accounting tricks to make it seem they split off IFS is to get orders from Apple, AMD, Nvidia, Qualcomm, etc. without conflict of interest. That has not happened and will not happen. Intel WILL sabotage any chip orders received from these companies in order to give them a leg up in the market. This is why Intel has received close to ZERO chip orders from other companies. The proof is in the pudding as they say. Only people like you play into the subterfuge but unfortunately for Intel, you are not in charge of a large chip design firm.
 
Last edited:
Joined
May 19, 2009
Messages
1,868 (0.33/day)
Location
Latvia
System Name Personal \\ Work - HP EliteBook 840 G6
Processor 7700X \\ i7-8565U
Motherboard Asrock X670E PG Lightning
Cooling Noctua DH-15
Memory G.SKILL Trident Z5 RGB Black 32GB 6000MHz CL36 \\ 16GB DDR4-2400
Video Card(s) ASUS RoG Strix 1070 Ti \\ Intel UHD Graphics 620
Storage 2x KC3000 2TB, Samsung 970 EVO 512GB \\ OEM 256GB NVMe SSD
Display(s) BenQ XL2411Z \\ FullHD + 2x HP Z24i external screens via docking station
Case Fractal Design Define Arc Midi R2 with window
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC1150 with Logitech Z533
Power Supply Corsair AX860i
Mouse Logitech G502
Keyboard Corsair K55 RGB PRO
Software Windows 11 \\ Windows 10
These are all publicly traded companies. No one is immune to buyouts. Of course, all mergers and acquisitions are subject to regulatory approval but just because it's Intel doesn't mean Intel is somehow special. It's just another corporation on the good ole stock market, available for purchase.

Intel is special. CPU market has only two players for the whole world which, literally, is dependant on them.
Doesn't matter if they are publicly traded, USA gov will simply put the foot down. Sure they can be carved up a bit, force to make some changes, etc. - but Uncle Sam needs them under control and they WILL be under control.
 
Joined
Jul 3, 2019
Messages
322 (0.16/day)
Location
Bulgaria
Processor 6700K
Motherboard M8G
Cooling D15S
Memory 16GB 3k15
Video Card(s) 2070S
Storage 850 Pro
Display(s) U2410
Case Core X2
Audio Device(s) ALC1150
Power Supply Seasonic
Mouse Razer
Keyboard Logitech
Software 22H2
Putting aside the whole regulatory aspect. I doubt Qualcomm would want to burden themselves with Intel's problems in the first place. Buying a specific piece of Intel's business seems more plausible to me.
Qualcomm is trying to get into the PC market. But that's Intel most profitable business. Selling it is completely nonsensical.
Which lead us to Mobileye (automotive) and Altera (infrastructure). Qualcomm has presence in both markets. If there's any substance to this news, i think It'll be about Mobileye or Altera.
 
Joined
Sep 6, 2013
Messages
3,433 (0.83/day)
Location
Athens, Greece
System Name 3 desktop systems: Gaming / Internet / HTPC
Processor Ryzen 5 7600 / Ryzen 5 4600G / Ryzen 5 5500
Motherboard X670E Gaming Plus WiFi / MSI X470 Gaming Plus Max (1) / MSI X470 Gaming Plus Max (2)
Cooling Aigo ICE 400SE / Segotep T4 / Νoctua U12S
Memory Kingston FURY Beast 32GB DDR5 6000 / 16GB JUHOR / 32GB G.Skill RIPJAWS 3600 + Aegis 3200
Video Card(s) ASRock RX 6600 / Vega 7 integrated / Radeon RX 580
Storage NVMes, ONLY NVMes / NVMes, SATA Storage / NVMe, SATA, external storage
Display(s) Philips 43PUS8857/12 UHD TV (120Hz, HDR, FreeSync Premium) / 19'' HP monitor + BlitzWolf BW-V5
Case Sharkoon Rebel 12 / CoolerMaster Elite 361 / Xigmatek Midguard
Audio Device(s) onboard
Power Supply Chieftec 850W / Silver Power 400W / Sharkoon 650W
Mouse CoolerMaster Devastator III Plus / CoolerMaster Devastator / Logitech
Keyboard CoolerMaster Devastator III Plus / CoolerMaster Devastator / Logitech
Software Windows 10 / Windows 10&Windows 11 / Windows 10
Yes and this is why i’m so happy to even hear how badly Intel is now doing. AMD didn’t get the money they deserved but man, observing karma going wild on intel must count for something. :D
Considering Qualcomm has used also very questionable anticompetitive moves in the past, in fact Nvidia used those anticompetitive tactics as one of the excuses to exit smartphone SOC market, I would be happier if Intel was bought from someone else, if there was any chance of this scenario becoming a reality. Qualcomm buying Intel would have been a very bad scenario.

I know nVidia is making a killing with all the AI bubble right now, but I can't help wonder whether intel could be saved by licensing x86 to nVidia for a great lot of money. The AI bubble might deflate (even if it doesn't completely bust like cryptomining), nvidia doesn't seem like the company to put all their eggs in one basket and not care about a valuable x86 license. Or is AMD's ownership of x64 a sticking point in such a scenario?
I doubt x86 license retains the value it had 20 years ago when Nvidia asked for one. ARM today is competitive in many markets and Nvidia is already using it in servers.
When AI bubble deflates, if it ever deflates or in case other hardware becomes preferred to GPUs, Nvidia can still take over the market thanks to it's superior GPUs and the power it can exercise on the market. A SoC with ARM cores and Nvidia iGPU could become easily a huge success in the market tomorrow. A platform with an Nvidia CPU and an Nvidia GPU that will be exclusive to that platform could also manage to get a portion of enthusiast gamers. Windows on ARM seems to be working this time and I bet that whatever Qualcomm can build today to run Windows on ARM and games on PCs, Nvidia can do it many times better and faster. As for AMD, unfortunately as we can see in the GPU business they can't fight Nvidia. AMD will come to an agreement eventually with Nvidia, or Nvidia might decide to start a price war in GPUs that Radeon wouldn't be able to fight. Nvidia is way too powerful today, that's why it wasn't allowed to take over ARM. And if US considers x86 extremely important, that's a reason for Qualcomm to not get Intel or AMD. Because Qualcomm probably wouldn't be interested to keep investing on x86.
 
Joined
Dec 29, 2010
Messages
3,810 (0.74/day)
Processor AMD 5900x
Motherboard Asus x570 Strix-E
Cooling Hardware Labs
Memory G.Skill 4000c17 2x16gb
Video Card(s) RTX 3090
Storage Sabrent
Display(s) Samsung G9
Case Phanteks 719
Audio Device(s) Fiio K5 Pro
Power Supply EVGA 1000 P2
Mouse Logitech G600
Keyboard Corsair K95
This news is just market manipulation to help Intel stock price? Be surprised if there's any substance to this at all. Does make me wonder about how bad this quarter is going to be for Intel though...
As I posted earlier, pump n dump news play.
 
Joined
Dec 6, 2022
Messages
489 (0.65/day)
Location
NYC
System Name GameStation
Processor AMD R5 5600X
Motherboard Gigabyte B550
Cooling Artic Freezer II 120
Memory 16 GB
Video Card(s) Sapphire Pulse 7900 XTX
Storage 2 TB SSD
Case Cooler Master Elite 120
Considering Qualcomm has used also very questionable anticompetitive moves in the past, in fact Nvidia used those anticompetitive tactics as one of the excuses to exit smartphone SOC market, I would be happier if Intel was bought from someone else, if there was any chance of this scenario becoming a reality.
Agreed. I mentioned this on another post.
Qualcomm buying Intel would have been a very bad scenario.
See above.
A platform with an Nvidia CPU and an Nvidia GPU that will be exclusive to that platform could also manage to get a portion of enthusiast gamers.
That would be as bad or worse for the whole industry, but for some weird reason, everyone now keeps giving Ngreedia free passes and dont even call out their many anti consumer practices.
As for AMD, unfortunately as we can see in the GPU business they can't fight Nvidia.
That’s not entirely true and on the contrary, they are fighting, with a way smaller budget and getting decent results.
The are behind on the software part but are working on it (ROCm vs CUDA). Example, their MI300X parts are faster than the targeted competitor (H100).
On the top 10 supercomputers, they hold several spots, including the first one.

The problem with gamers is that we now have these influencers that don’t educate consumers into not falling for non platform agnostic tech and instead praise such things. Just see how none of them, ever, make any such warnings about dlss?
Or overhype tech that its still not entirely ready for mass consumption, like RT.
I can go on, but I’m already gone way off topic.
 
Joined
Dec 12, 2016
Messages
1,964 (0.67/day)
Intel is special. CPU market has only two players for the whole world which, literally, is dependant on them.
Doesn't matter if they are publicly traded, USA gov will simply put the foot down. Sure they can be carved up a bit, force to make some changes, etc. - but Uncle Sam needs them under control and they WILL be under control.
There are literally dozens and dozens of CPU players nowadays. I think you are missing why Intel is struggling lately. You are just thinking about the computer gaming enthusiast DIY market here at TPU. If Intel disappeared right now, it would just mean Qualcomm, Apple, AMD, Nvidia, Mediatek, Huawei, IBM, Samsung, other ARM and Risc-V licensees and more companies would fill the gap. In fact that's what's happening right this very second as Intel's revenues, margins and market share plummets.

Intel is not special. Not anymore. And not ever again.

That’s not entirely true and on the contrary, they are fighting, with a way smaller budget and getting decent results.
A good example of this is how AMD has and is beating Intel. :)
 
Joined
Dec 6, 2022
Messages
489 (0.65/day)
Location
NYC
System Name GameStation
Processor AMD R5 5600X
Motherboard Gigabyte B550
Cooling Artic Freezer II 120
Memory 16 GB
Video Card(s) Sapphire Pulse 7900 XTX
Storage 2 TB SSD
Case Cooler Master Elite 120
There are literally dozens and dozens of CPU players nowadays. I think you are missing why Intel is struggling lately. You are just thinking about the computer gaming enthusiast DIY market here at TPU. If Intel disappeared right now, it would just mean Qualcomm, Apple, AMD, Nvidia, Mediatek, Huawei, IBM, Samsung, other ARM and Risc-V licensees and more companies would fill the gap. In fact that's what's happening right this very second as Intel's revenues, margins and market share plummets.

Intel is not special. Not anymore. And not ever again.
You forgot that IBM opened POWER and are still developing them. Heck, maybe they should take another shot.
A good example of this is how AMD has and is beating Intel. :)
Exactly and again, with way less resources aka money to do so.
 
Top