Apple has extended its agreement with Qualcomm until 2027
Apple will continue using Qualcomm’s 5G connectivity modems
Apple is planning to develop its own 5G, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth chips for implementation in future electronics devices. However, plans continue to be delayed due to technical complications. For this reason, the Californian company announced that it would extend its contract with Qualcomm until 2026. Now it seems that the contract will last one more year.
The latest information indicates that Apple will continue to use Qualcomm’s 5G chips in its iPhone models until at least 2027. Therefore, we can deduce that the last iPhone to use Qualcomm chips will be the iPhone 19.
This has been confirmed Cristiano Amon, CEO of Qualcomm, during Qualcomm’s fiscal results report from CNBC.
Everything seems to indicate that Apple is having a difficult time developing its own 5G modems. The Cupertino company can’t find the right formula for chip design and will have to continue depending on Qualcomm for a few more years.
The problem is that Qualcomm asks Apple for a percentage of the value of its iPhones rather than offering a license for the use of its registered patents. In fact, this is how Apple Silicon, Apple’s answer with its M series processors, was born.
Cristiano Amon has announced that his company will continue to offer its 5G modems to Apple until March 2027. As he told CNBC, he is “happy with the relationship with Apple.” Previously, the agreement had been extended until 2026.
Apple has not yet commented on the matter. The firm with the bitten apple logo has been trying to develop its own 5G chips for many years with the aim of replacing Qualcomm modems.
In 2019, Apple acquired Intel’s modem development division for $1 billion. The acquisition gave Apple more than 17,000 patents and more than 2,200 Intel employees. However, this great economic effort has not yet seen its reward and plans to develop 5G chips have been delayed year after year.
Apple’s 5G modem prototypes have failed to surpass Qualcomm chips in terms of performance and efficiency.
Furthermore, Apple has also extended its contract with Arm Holdings, Ltd., the company behind the ARM architecture patents. The agreement will extend until “beyond 2024”, according to sources familiar with the contract.