According to Mark Gurman of Bloomberg, Apple will continue to purchase modem chips from Qualcomm for the 2023 iPhone 15 series. Contrary to prior predictions that it would only supply a small portion of modem chips, Qualcomm claimed it is on track to supply the “vast majority” of modem chips for Apple’s devices. In November 2021,
Qualcomm stated that it anticipated supplying 20% of Apple’s modem chips in 2023, perhaps indicating a switch to Apple’s own modem chips. Apple has been attempting to reduce its dependency on Qualcomm by creating its own internal modem technology, but it does not seem that its processors will be ready for a 2023 release.
Qualcomm Chips Will Power Apple Devices
Gurman’s report confirms details that Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo previously provided. According to Kuo, Apple’s efforts to develop a 5G modem chip “failed” in June 2022, and would continue to be Apple’s modem provider for the 2023 iPhone lineup.
Kuo claimed that although work on the chip slowed, it is still being done. However, it will take longer for the work to be finished and acceptable to use in iPhones as well as other devices. Apple is expected to develop its own modem chip.
In 2017, Apple filed a lawsuit against Qualcomm, claiming that it was wrongfully collecting royalties for technologies that Apple had nothing to do with. With the switch to 5G, Apple intended to cease paying Qualcomm’s fees and switch to using Intel technology, but Intel was unable to produce 5G processors that matched Apple’s requirements.
Since they agreed to a settlement, Apple has been using 5G modem processors in its iPhone and iPad models. Since then, Apple has been developing its own modem chip and even bought Intel’s modem chip division to get an advantage. Initial speculations suggested that Apple would be prepared to make the switch in 2023, but it appears that it will take a little longer for Apple to sever its modem agreements with Qualcomm.