The seven-year relationship between Apple and Intel may soon come to an end, at least according to sources speaking with Bloomberg.
According to the report, Apple engineers are confident that the chips found in the company's smartphones and tablets will one day be powerful enough to run laptops and desktops.
The news of an Apple/Intel break up is nothing new - TechRadar reported last month that Apple was considering moving away from Intel CPUs and even posted a job opening for an in-house system-on-a-chip architect.
Apple has packed Intel chips into its personal computers since 2005, but now that mobile devices and PCs are becoming more similar, the switch to in-house designs may be inevitable.
Commonality
According to Bloomberg's sources, Apple engineers foresee a common chip design compatible with both mobile devices and larger computers.
Perhaps the most pointed sign of Apple's intentions is a recent management shift that saw Bob Mansfield become the head of a new group dubbed "Technologies."
That department oversees semiconductors and has "ambitious plans for the future," according to Apple's statement about the management overhaul.
Apple's new iPad 4 packs an A6X processor, a chip that's two times faster than the one found in older iPads.
While this doesn't necessarily mean its powerful enough to run a PC, it does indicate Apple has the capability and desire to design ever-better chips.
Via Bloomberg
