Apple poached Intel’s head for 5G ahead of its truce with Qualcomm

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We speculate that a part of why Intel gave up on 5G was because Apple and Qualcomm’s truce. But it seems there might be one more thing to add to that. Weeks before the said settlement, Apple poached Intel’s 5G modem head Umashankar Thyagarajan. His departure wasn’t exactly a secret. But he was, according to the Telegraph, the project engineer for the XMM 8160 chipset, which was at the heart of Intel’s 5G plans. And he “played a key role” in the creation of the Intel modems in the iPhone XS and XR.

Intel and Apple are not commenting on the report. And it isn’t clear what his role in Apple is, apart from it being described as “Architecture” on his LinkedIn page. But we expect he is working on wireless chipset design for Apple. Apple has in the past said it wanted to make its own cellular chipsets, so we aren’t as surprised about the hire as we should be.

Intel to bow out of smartphone-modem business

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With Apple and Qualcomm working out its differences and settling their lawsuits, Intel is effectively out of the picture. And now that it isn’t developing its 5G chipsets, it seems the company wants out of its smartphone-modem business as well. Apple was considering buying part of Intel’s modem ventures, but that deal was stopped short when Apple and Qualcomm signed a multi-year chipset-supply deal. That doesn’t mean the company hasn’t expressed interest in buying this segment from Intel. According to The Wall Street Journal, a few other companies are looking at buying said business. Goldman Sachs is helping Intel facilitate negotiations. The deal is most likely worth a few billion dollars, but it’s in its early stages for now. The company is reportedly losing around US$1 billion annually because of its modem business, so the sale could include staff, patents, and modem designs across multiple technology generaitons.

Apple rumoured to be releasing first 5G phone in 2020

A new report from Fast Company suggests Apple is working on launching its first 5G-enabled phone in 2020. This next-generation cellular networking technology promises to bring faster download speeds for consumers and hardware makers have been working hard to get products ready for its arrival. Apple already has FCC approval to experiment with 5G last year, giving them room to work on a 5G phone. According to “a source with knowledge of Apple’s plans,” the said phone will be out in 2020.

While Apple has had its fair share of issues with Intel, the report claims Apple will be using Intel’s 8161 5G modem chip. However, said chip still has some issues to sort out, particularly when it comes to heat dissipation and its effect on battery life. Apple is rumoured to also be talking to MediaTek as a “Plan B.” Apple hasn’t commented on the report.

Intel shuts down its smart glasses initiative

You may or may not have heard of Intel’s smart glasses project but what you need to know about it now is that it won’t be around anymore. The company is shutting down its New Devices Group and will stop development of the Vaunt. This closure might also result in “some layoffs” from the team which reportedly has around 200 people. It wasn’t clear what how Intel intended to bring the augmented reality glasses to the market but sources claim Intel wanted to partner with a company with retail expertise to get this off the ground. As Vaunt lead Jerry Bautista told The Verge, the company was “working with key ecosystem hardware providers—whether they’re frames or lenses and things like that. Because we believe there’s a whole channel to people who wear glasses that’s already there.” But it might be the company wasn’t able to find a suitable partner for this, thus resulting in the closure.

Here is Intel’s statement on the matter: “Intel is continuously working on new technologies and experiences. Not all of these develop into a product we choose to take to market. The Superlight [the codename for Vaunt] project is a great example where Intel developed truly differentiated, consumer augmented reality glasses. We are going to take a disciplined approach as we keep inventing and exploring new technologies, which will sometimes require tough choices when market dynamics don’t support further investment.”