According to the journalist of “Bloomberg” Mark Gurman, very well informed about Apple, the firm at the apple would gradually abandon the chips designed by subcontractors to replace them with homemade chips. One more step towards more independence for the apple brand.
Apple is gradually abandoning some of its suppliers for the design and manufacture of chips for its iPhone, iPad, MacBook and Mac. Journalist Mark Gurman explained in an article published on Bloomberg that Apple would like to replace several of them. If Apple has already removed Intel processors from its computers in favor of its M1 and M2 chips, it would be the turn of other chips to be designed by the company itself.
Apple would like to part with its subcontractors
According to information from Mark Gurman, Apple would like to replace a chip produced by Broadcom in 2025 in favor of another designed by Apple. It would be a big blow for Broadcom since the Cupertino giant represents its largest customer, weighing on 20% of its turnover, or just under 7 billion dollars. Broadcom makes a ” combined component that manages both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth functions on Apple devices “.
However, Broadcom would continue to supply Apple with components, ” including radio frequency chips and chips that manage wireless charging “. Mark Gurman notes that Apple ” also strives to customize these pieces “. A situation that does not seem to worry the company’s general manager Hock Tan, who said in a conference call that he felt he had the best technology.
The same goes for the modem, until now manufactured by Qualcomm: ” Apple also intends to have its first cellular modem chip ready by late 2024 or early 2025. “. Apple is also a big customer for Qualcomm: it represents 22% of its annual turnover, or nearly 10 billion dollars. The manufacturer has known for years that Apple will gradually stop working with him and tends to convert.
Strained relations between Apple and its suppliers
Mark Gurman also recounts tense commercial relations between the Apple brand and its subcontractors. First with Broadcom: its CEO ” has a reputation for tough negotiations and has forced some customers to commit to non-cancellable orders during component supply shortages, especially during the pandemic. We know, however, that Apple has an expenditure of 15 billion dollars between 2020 and 2023 with its supplier.
If this separation has probably been planned for several years, we can think that the legal war between Apple and Qualcomm has not helped matters. Especially since it concerned patents related to modems. The resolution found: Qualcomm will supply components to Apple until 2024.
Towards a chip who does everything “, but not right now
Mark Gurman goes on to state that Apple is developing a chip internally that will combine the cellular modem, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth into a single component. It could be used in its devices as early as 2025. Apple’s expertise in this area has already been proven, such as with the H2 component in AirPods or the W3 chip in Apple Watch.
While waiting for this single chip, Apple wants to replace Qualcomm’s modems. For the journalist, Apple initially plans to use its own component in a single new product, such as a high-end iPhone model “. This also explains why Apple would have canceled its iPhone 4 SE.
Thereafter, Qualcomm modems would be phased out over three years. Initially, this was to be the case this year, “ but development issues have pushed the schedule back »: overheating, autonomy, validation (for operation with all operators and in all countries). The brand is also believed to be working on its own Micro LED display for a future Apple Watch.
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