Qualcomm’s Takeover Interest in Intel Is Said to Cool

(Bloomberg) — Qualcomm Inc.’s interest in pursuing Intel has waned, according to people familiar with the matter, upending what could have been one of the biggest technology deals in history. That’s what it means.

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The complexities involved in buying all of Intel make it less attractive for Qualcomm, said some of the people, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss confidential matters. There’s always the possibility that Qualcomm could instead look to parts of Intel or reignite its interest later, they added.

The Intel acquisition would rank among the largest acquisitions in history based on current market value. If successful, the acquisition would be the largest acquisition of a tech hardware company, surpassing Broadcom’s acquisition of software maker VMware in 2023. It could also have helped reshape the semiconductor industry and create a larger chip leader in the United States. This comes at a time when governments around the world are racing to increase domestic supplies.

Intel shares fell about 1% in premarket U.S. trading. Representatives for Qualcomm and Intel declined to comment.

Bloomberg News and other news outlets reported in September that Qualcomm had made a preliminary approach to Intel about a possible acquisition. The announcement came just weeks after Intel released a disappointing earnings forecast and a damning earnings report that outlined a 15% reduction in headcount due to “resizing and refocusing.”

But the deal faced a number of financial, regulatory and operational hurdles, including Intel’s assumption of more than $50 billion in debt. It would likely require a long and difficult antitrust review, including in China, an important market for both companies.

Qualcomm would have had to deal with Intel’s loss-making semiconductor manufacturing division, which it had no experience with.

Qualcomm is eyeing new markets such as personal computers, networking and automotive chips to generate an additional $22 billion in annual revenue by fiscal 2029.

“Right now, we have not identified any major acquisitions that we would need to make this $22 billion,” Cristiano Amon, the San Diego-based company’s chief executive, said in an interview on Bloomberg TV last week. Ta. ”

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