Sources: Intel wins contract to supply modem chips for some iPhones
Qualcomm to remain provider of chips in China, Verizon phones — Qualcomm CEO had said he expected major customer to diversify — Apple Inc.'s next iPhone will use modems from Intel Corp., replacing Qualcomm Inc. chips …
Context & Ripple Effects
This ends a decade-long exclusivity: Qualcomm had been the only modem supplier for every iPhone until now, after more than a thousand Intel engineers worked to qualify its 7360 LTE chip for the device over the prior year. The win is partial by design — Qualcomm keeps the China variants and Verizon phones, where CDMA support matters.
It is also the opening move of a longer arc: Apple went on designing devices that exclude Qualcomm entirely, Qualcomm publicly accused it of planning an all-competitor lineup amid their patent fight, and the dependence eventually cut both ways — Apple's worry about Intel as a sole 5G supplier drove the 2019 reconciliation, and by late 2022 Qualcomm expected to power the vast majority of 2023 iPhones.
First-order effects
- Qualcomm loses its sole-source position on some iPhone models immediately, while retaining the China and Verizon slots named in the report — revenue concentration risk replaces total dependence.
Second-order effects
- Dual sourcing gives Apple pricing leverage over both vendors for the first time, and validates Intel as a credible merchant smartphone-modem supplier just as Apple's design teams weigh MediaTek alongside Intel for future exclusions.
Third-order effects
- If the pattern holds, flagship-phone silicon shifts toward multi-vendor qualification — but the later arc shows the limit: a second source only protects Apple while that source can keep pace on each generation, which is exactly what failed when 5G arrived.
The trend: Apple's modem strategy oscillates between deliberate dual-sourcing to discipline Qualcomm and forced re-consolidation whenever its alternative supplier falls behind the next radio generation.