Qualcomm is temporarily pausing its bid to buy Intel, according to reports

Qualcomms Intel the takeover bid is on ice, at least for the time being. According to sources, the mobile chip maker is reportedly holding off on approaching Intel with a purchase offer due to the uncertainty caused by the US presidential elections in a few weeks, seeking “clarity” on who will take the helm in the Oval Office before he makes a bid or not.

Intel has not had the best year so far. The current generation of Intel Raptor Lake CPUs have suffered from voltage instability issues that caused permanent damage, its stock price has fallen more than 50% since January, and it lags behind AMD in the battle to make the best gaming CPUs. Qualcomm, meanwhile, has seen its latest Snapdragon X Plus CPUs chip away at Intel and AMD’s hold on the market in the latest Windows Copilot+ laptops.

This new update follows rumors of Intel’s acquisition that surfaced a few weeks ago. While Qualcomm hasn’t officially confirmed its plans one way or another, Bloomberg reports from sources “familiar with the matter” that plans to buy Intel have been put on hold until after the election, especially given the massive change in the political landscape which could occur when Donald Trump returns to the White House in January.

For starters, it’s likely that a potential new Trump administration would take a stronger stance on U.S. trade with China. China is an important market for both chipmakers, and while Qualcomm and Intel are both American companies, the dual impact of a new administration and a deteriorating relationship with China could make or break the deal. There is also no guarantee that Donald Trump or Kamala Harris would support the move, and a takeover bid for Qualcomm itself by Broadcom, another US chipmaker, was blocked by Donald Trump in 2018.

It’s important not to underestimate how big this would be for modern computers. Buying Intel would give Qualcomm not only control over Intel’s manufacturing power and expertise, but also control over its intellectual property. That includes control of the x86 instruction set, the foundation for modern desktop and laptop CPUs for decades.

Questions could also be asked about whether an acquisition would impact AMD’s x86 license with Intel. Combining Qualcomm’s already extensive experience with Arm chips with control over x86 architecture would make it the most dominant chipmaker in the world.

If the bid goes through, Qualcomm will also likely face criticism from lawmakers and trade organizations around the world. A similar large-scale attempt by Nvidia to buy Arm was blocked by the UK Competition and Markets Authority in 2020, with the CMA believing the acquisition would “damage the competitiveness of Nvidia’s rivals by limiting access to Arm’s intellectual property.”

Similar arguments are sure to arise in any potential collaboration between Qualcomm and Intel, and not just among lawmakers. Other competitors likely have a vested interest in opposing the deal, including Nvidia, with Nvidia CPU rumors suggesting the company is preparing to launch its own set of Arm-based CPUs to challenge Qualcomm.

But for now, Intel and AMD’s duopoly over CPUs remains, and it’s clear the two companies are taking the threat from upstarts like Qualcomm seriously. A new x86 working group has just been formed to help forge a new future for desktop and laptop CPUs, but if Qualcomm were to buy Intel, this new working relationship could deteriorate quite quickly.

Whatever happens, Intel will press on, with a brand new line of processors launching in just a week. If you’re thinking about a new build, you might want to check out our Intel Arrow Lake guide to find out if these new CPUs are worth the upgrade. Otherwise, you can always get an Intel Core i9 14900K, the most powerful Intel CPU you can currently buy.