Intel: Broadcom and TSMC would relaunch discussions on a potential buyout

While the fate of Intel factories still seems uncertain, the discussions around a potential acquisition of the American company leave again. After first rumors at the end of last year concerning Qualcomm – and even Elon Musk – It is now the American Broadcom and the Taiwanese TSMC who are at the center of new discussions, according to the information of Wall Street Journal. Each party would covet a particular division of Intel – Broadcom for its commercial and design branch of fleas, and TSMC for its semiconductor manufacturing factories relaunched in 2022.

This is not the first time that the press has echoed Broadcom's attempts. The specialist of hardware telecommunications, particularly dependent on his juicy contract with Apple renewed in 2023accelerated its acquisitions over the past few years – Symantec (owner of the Norton antivirus) in 2019 and Vmware (Cloud services) in 2022. However, Broadcom would not plan to embark on a solo acquisition and are looking for an acquisition with several – if not nothing.

For TSMC, it is the Intel Foundry Services division which would be at the center of its attentions. A potential diversification of its semiconductor manufacturer activity on the North American continent could play in its favor, faced with the rise of tensions between the United States and China since the launch of Donald Trump's new mandate. The latter, yet openly opposed to the Chips Act of 2022 and its $ 7 billion in subsidies granted to Intel, would hardly see the acquisition of the American giant by a foreign company.

Whatever the realization or not of these first exchanges, the Pat Gelsinger era seems definitively over in Intel. The old CEO, politely ousted in January 2024 speak board Shareholders favored a long -term vision by investing massively in the recovery of the industrial tool – about six years after the failure of Intel Custom Foundry. But the lack of rapid financial returns, a notable absence on the ground of AI and the fierce competition of rivals like Nvidia were right for her post. Since then, if the fate of Intel factories in the United States is still vague, and this despite the first overview of the Puce Panther Lake in CES 2025, its acting director Frank Yeary would have clearly announced its priority: that of “Maximize performance for the benefit of shareholders“, always according to Wall Street Journal. Including act.