Apple Is Reportedly Developing Cellular Modem

Apple told employees Thursday that it kicked off in-house development of cellular modems, Bloomberg reports. The component will enable 5G connectivity for future Apple devices—and more control over the iPhone supply chain.

We knew this was coming. In July 2019, Apple acquired the majority of Intel’s struggling smartphone-modem chip unit. A few months before that, Apple settled a litigious beef with Qualcomm and agreed to license 5G technology from the chipmaker for six years.

Now, the Qualcomm-Apple storyline returns

Apple will still have to pay a licensing fee to Qualcomm. But it’s clearly embarking on a path toward building its own cellular chips, rather than buying them from someone else. Qualcomm, which gets 11% of its revenue from Apple, doesn’t love that. On Friday, the chipmaker’s stock dropped as much as 9%.

Big picture: Memorize the Tim Cook doctrine. The CEO says Apple has a "long-term strategy of owning and controlling the primary technologies behind the products that we make.”