Arm Holdings PLC approached Intel Corp about potentially buying the ailing chipmaker’s product division, only to be told that the business is not for sale, according to a source with direct knowledge of the matter.
In the high-level inquiry, Arm did not express interest in Intel’s manufacturing operations, said the source, who asked not to be identified because the discussions were private.
Intel has two main units: A product group that sells chips for personal computers, servers and networking equipment, and another that operates its factories.
Photo: Reuters
Representatives for Arm and Intel declined to comment.
Intel, once the world’s largest chipmaker, has become the target of takeover speculation since a rapid deterioration of its business this year. The company delivered a disastrous earnings report last month — sending its shares on their worst rout in decades — and is slashing 15,000 jobs to save money. It is also scaling back factory expansion plans and halting its long-cherished dividend.
As part of its turnaround efforts, Intel is separating the chip product division from its manufacturing operations. The move is aimed at attracting outside customers and investors, but it also lays the groundwork for the company to be split up — something Intel has considered, Bloomberg reported last month.
Arm, which is majority-owned by SoftBank Group Corp, makes much of its revenue selling chip designs for smartphones.
However, Arm chief executive officer Rene Haas has sought to broaden its reach outside of that industry. That has included a push into personal computers and servers, where its chip designs are going up against Intel’s.
Although Intel does not have the technological edge it once held, the Santa Clara, California-based company remains dominant in those markets.
Combining with Intel would help Arm’s reach and kick-start a move toward selling more of its own products. The company licenses technology and designs to customers, who then turn them into complete components. Its client list includes the biggest names in technology, such as Amazon.com Inc, Qualcomm Inc and Samsung Electronics Co.
Under Haas, the company has moved more in the direction of offering fully formed products — potentially putting it in competition with its licensees.
Arm, based in Cambridge, England, only has a fraction of Intel’s revenue. However, its valuation has soared since an initial public offering last year and now stands at more than US$156 billion.
Investors see the company as a beneficiary of the artificial intelligence spending boom, especially as it moves further into data center chips. Arm also has the backing of Japan’s SoftBank, which owns an 88 percent stake, potentially giving the company additional financial clout.
Intel, in contrast, has lost more than half its value this year and has a current market capitalization of US$102.3 billion. However, the company has other options to consider. Apollo Global Management Inc offered to make an investment in the company, Bloomberg reported this week. The firm indicated in recent days that it would be willing to put in as much as US$5 billion, marking a vote of confidence for CEO Pat Gelsinger.
Intel also plans to sell part of its stake in semiconductor maker Altera Corp to private equity investors. That business, which the chipmaker bought in 2015, was separated from Intel’s operations last year with the goal of taking it public.
Anna Bhobho, a 31-year-old housewife from rural Zimbabwe, was once a silent observer in her home, excluded from financial and family decisionmaking in the deeply patriarchal society. Today, she is a driver of change in her village, thanks to an electric tricycle she owns. In many parts of rural sub-Saharan Africa, women have long been excluded from mainstream economic activities such as operating public transportation. However, three-wheelers powered by green energy are reversing that trend, offering financial opportunities and a newfound sense of importance. “My husband now looks up to me to take care of a large chunk of expenses,
SECTOR LEADER: TSMC can increase capacity by as much as 20 percent or more in the advanced node part of the foundry market by 2030, an analyst said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is expected to lead its peers in the advanced 2-nanometer process technology, despite competition from Samsung Electronics Co and Intel Corp, TrendForce Corp analyst Joanne Chiao (喬安) said. TSMC’s sophisticated products and its large production scale are expected to allow the company to continue dominating the global 2-nanometer process market this year, Chiao said. The world’s largest contract chipmaker is scheduled to begin mass production of chips made on the 2-nanometer process in its Hsinchu fab in the second half of this year. It would also hold a ceremony on Monday next week to
TECH CLUSTER: The US company’s new office is in the Shalun Smart Green Energy Science City, a new AI industry base and cybersecurity hub in southern Taiwan US chip designer Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) yesterday launched an office in Tainan’s Gueiren District (歸仁), marking a significant milestone in the development of southern Taiwan’s artificial intelligence (AI) industry, the Tainan City Government said in a statement. AMD Taiwan general manager Vincent Chern (陳民皓) presided over the opening ceremony for the company’s new office at the Shalun Smart Green Energy Science City (沙崙智慧綠能科學城), a new AI industry base and cybersecurity hub in southern Taiwan. Facilities in the new office include an information processing center, and a research and development (R&D) center, the Tainan Economic Development Bureau said. The Ministry
ADVERSARIES: The new list includes 11 entities in China and one in Taiwan, which is a local branch of Chinese cloud computing firm Inspur Group The US added dozens of entities to a trade blacklist on Tuesday, the US Department of Commerce said, in part to disrupt Beijing’s artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced computing capabilities. The action affects 80 entities from countries including China, the United Arab Emirates and Iran, with the commerce department citing their “activities contrary to US national security and foreign policy.” Those added to the “entity list” are restricted from obtaining US items and technologies without government authorization. “We will not allow adversaries to exploit American technology to bolster their own militaries and threaten American lives,” US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick said. The entities