Google to court Qualcomm, jilted lover Intel may be put out in the cold

Intel might be on the verge of losing one of its biggest customers. Word on the street is that Google is looking to tap Qualcomm to produce its server chips going forward, according to Bloomberg. Although this wouldn’t ruin Intel, it would certainly be a serious hit to the company’s bottom line.

If these rumors are true, Google will announce next week that they’ve decided to endorse Qualcomm’s chips over their long-time supplier Intel. Although Intel still supplies practically all of the chips on the server market, this is a slackening trade. As it stands, Google currently purchases nearly a third of a million computer chips every quarter from Intel, landing the search giant as Intel’s third largest customer behind HP and Dell.

Mobile tech is on the rise, and Qualcomm has made a name for themselves in this niche, producing the majority of chips for all non-Apple smartphones currently on the market. Intel has historically leaned on PC tech, which is in decline compared to mobile devices. It seems like Google has seen the value that Qualcomm has been bringing to the table on Android devices, and they may be looking to make the chipmaker their go-to resource for server chips as well. If they decide to go through with this, it will be a serious blow to Intel since the company currently tracks full half of its income from server-based sales.

What are your thoughts regarding this business maneuver? Would Google be making the right move switching to Qualcomm, or should they remain loyal to their long-time provider? Let us know your opinions in the comments below!