Broadcom, TSMC reportedly exploring deals that would split up Intel

Broadcom and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) are separately exploring deals to take over parts of Intel, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.

Broadcom is reportedly considering an acquisition of Intel’s chip-design and marketing business, and would want a partner for the company’s manufacturing business, while TSMC is reportedly looking at controlling some or all of Intel’s chip plants, potentially as part of an investor consortium.

All discussions have been preliminary, the Journal says, with nothing submitted to Intel. Apparently TSMC is exploring a deal at the encouragement of President Donald Trump’s administration, although a White House official said the administration was unlikely to support an arrangement that put a foreign entity in control of Intel’s factories.

Intel’s struggling business seems to have made it an acquisition target for chip-making rivals. The Journal reported in September that Qualcomm had approached Intel about a takeover.