Five months after selling off its own modem business to Apple for a reported $1 billion, US semiconductor giant, Intel, signed an agreement with Taiwanese chipmaker, MediaTek, to jointly develop 5G modems for laptops. The two companies on Monday released a press statement, saying they will collaborate “on the development, certification and support of 5G modem solutions for the next generation of PC experiences”.
As part of the partnership, Intel will define a 5G solution specification, including a 5G modem meant for deployment in laptop computers. The chip itself will be developed and delivered by MediaTek, while the US chipmaker will develop and validate platform-level hardware and software integration, including OS host drivers. The first batch of products to sport the jointly-developed 5G solution is expected for early 2021.
Both companies have expressed their satisfaction at the deal, with Gregory Bryant, the executive vice president and general manager of Intel’s Client Computing Group, saying: “This partnership with MediaTek brings together industry leaders with deep engineering, system integration and connectivity expertise to deliver 5G experiences on the next generation of the world’s best PCs”.
MediaTek President, Joe Chen, also released a statement along similar lines, saying the collaboration will help make 5G accessible and available across different mobile platforms on-the-go. “Working with Intel, an industry leader in computing, highlights MediaTek’s expertise in designing 5G technology for global markets. With this partnership, consumers will be able to browse, stream and game faster on their PCs, but we also expect them to innovate with 5G in ways we have not yet imagined”, he said.
