The sharks are circling. There was another report that a major company is considering a takeover of struggling Intel.

This comes from the tech YouTube channel Moore's Law is Dead, where Tom S. reports that there are “whispers” about a possible acquisition by Apple. He also claims that Samsung is interested in acquiring or merging with the chipmaker.

The whispers come amid Intel's struggles this year. The company has made a number of layoffs in the past year, with 15,000 people reportedly laid off in August.

In the report, and based on early reviews of Intel's Arrow Lake chipset, the next Intel chip may have come out in a hurry, causing system crashes, compatibility issues and inconsistencies. This all sounds very similar to the problems with the early launch of Raptor Lake. [As Arm-based chipsets like Qualcomm's Snapdragon Elite, which was announced this summer at Microsoft's Copilot Plus PC, have gained a more significant foothold in the PC world, Intel and AMD have formed an x86 advisory group. However, Arm and Qualcomm are in the midst of their own legal battle over licensing that could affect Qualcomm's entry into PC processors.

Apple and Samsung are not the only major tech companies reportedly considering acquiring Intel; in September, Qualcomm reportedly approached Intel about a possible acquisition.

To be clear, as Tom has reiterated several times, these are all rumors, and it is not certain that an Intel acquisition is actually in the works. However, he suggested that Samsung is closer to some kind of deal, whether a full acquisition or a merger, than Apple or Qualcomm.

Like Intel, Samsung has struggled with its own Exynos chips and may not introduce a new version this year due to poor yields. Through a merger or acquisition, Samsung could gain more foundries and expertise to improve its Exynos product line.

TSMC eating Samsung's lunch does not help, especially with the new 3nm process and 2nm-based processors that could be available next year or in 2026. Apple uses TSMC to make its M4 and A18 SoCs, and Qualcomm also uses TSMC to make its chips; TSMC currently makes all of its processors; and TSMC is the only company that makes a 2nm processor.

In addition, Tom suggests that if Samsung acquires Intel, it would prevent Qualcomm from becoming the new Samsung.

For starters, as the report speculates, Apple may be looking to acquire Intel to prevent Qualcomm from becoming an even bigger force in the market.

Apple has been steadily bringing component manufacturing in-house without interfering with its competitors. As noted above, TSMC currently manufactures Apple's chips, but Apple's desire to reduce its dependence on TSMC is evident.

The Intel acquisition would give Apple a stronger foothold in semiconductor manufacturing and give Apple access to Intel's myriad of patents. It would change how Apple operates in the M line of chips for the iPad and Mac.

Nevertheless, if any of the companies mentioned were serious about acquiring Intel, there could be significant regulatory issues, especially in the US where Intel is a large company.