Qualcomm is reportedly interested in acquiring Intel's chip design division.

Rumours persist about Intel's desire to cut itself apart to survive the current storm. Amid reports that an action plan is imminent, it appears that Qualcomm may be moving around in its periphery, eyeing up potential acquisitions--including Intel's chip design business.

Two sources who spoke to Reuters said that Qualcomm's executives are "very interested" in Intel's PC design business, but they're also looking at the entire design division of the company (via Wccftech). Intel's spokesperson said that Qualcomm had not approached the company to discuss an acquisition. However, the idea of such a move was quite intriguing.

Qualcomm's ARM chips were a much-anticipated addition to the PC CPU market. While they may have been hampered in practice by emulation problems, they seem to have gotten under Intel's Skin a little. The recent Lunar Lake launch of the blue team was littered with references about Qualcomm's chips. (More than AMD, actually), which suggests that Intel is taking Qualcomm's foray into the market very seriously.

Intel would be unlikely to want to sell a prestigious portion of its business, even if it was to a competitor that is gaining traction in the PC market. Intel's recent struggles make it important to take any offer seriously.

Sources say that Qualcomm is working on plans to purchase pieces of Intel since months, but its interests and plans are not finalised and subject to change.

Intel's recent performance has not been good. Intel has announced that it will not be using its 20A node to manufacture its upcoming Arrow Lake chips.

Intel has chosen to focus its attention on the 18A node which, according to Intel, has produced promising results. Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger had previously stated that he "bet the entire company on 18A". It seems that Intel is keen to focus on this particular segment of its business.

But what about the design of the chip? That would be a big blow to a chip manufacturer. It's not surprising that Intel is in such dire straits. Qualcomm has been snooping around Intel to see if it might be willing to sell some of its most valuable assets.