Sep
Apple’s ambitious endeavor to create its own modem chip for its latest iPhone models has encountered difficulties, as reported by the Wall Street Journal. Despite investing billions of dollars and acquiring Intel’s smartphone modem unit in 2019, Apple’s quest to save on Qualcomm’s modem expenses has faced setbacks.
Initiated in 2018 to reduce dependence on Qualcomm, the Apple modem project has struggled due to technical hurdles, management issues, and an underestimation of its complexity, sources tell WSJ. Consequently, Apple has had to maintain its collaboration with Qualcomm.
The project began with a directive from Tim Cook to design a modem logic chip, leading to the recruitment of thousands of engineers and an internal project known as “Project Sinope.” However, Apple’s chip encountered performance issues, overheating problems, and occupied excessive internal space, rendering it impractical for iPhones.
Management problems compounded the challenges. Dispersed teams lacked unified leadership, resulting in poor internal communication and unrealistic targets. Some managers discouraged negative updates, contributing to missed deadlines.
Apple initially underestimated the complexity of modem chip design compared to general-purpose processors and system-on-chips. Modem chips must adhere to strict global connectivity standards and adapt the phone’s front end module (FEM) to varying conditions.
Financially, the in-house chip project has not yielded the expected cost savings. Apple ended up paying Qualcomm over $7.2 billion for chips, and the company extended its modem chip agreement with Qualcomm until 2026.
Despite these setbacks, Apple remains committed to its modem chip project. Insiders suggest a potential comparable chip by late 2025, although further delays may occur.