Episode 48: Qualcomm - Broadcom

Ben & David cover the proposed largest tech M&A deal of
all time, and in the process dive into the evolving dynamics of
the industry that started everything in Silicon Valley—silicon.
Just when VCs thought innovation was dead in semiconductors, a
new wave of startups and large companies are redrawing the lines
of competition in an industry dominated for a half-century by the
“Wintel” duopoly of Intel and Microsoft.


Sponsors:


WorkOS: https://bit.ly/workos25

Sierra: https://bit.ly/acquiredsierra

Sentry: https://bit.ly/acquiredsentry

Anthropic: https://bit.ly/acquiredclaude25






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Topics Covered Include:


Innovation and disruption in the semiconductor industry over
the past two years

 Intel’s acquisition of Nervana

 Graphcore and other ML-focused semiconductor startups

CDMA and the telephone network effect

 Qualcomm’s early cell phone handsets 

Vertical integration + commoditization in smartphone
chipsets 



The Carve Out:


Ben: The de-watering of Niagara Falls

David: Big Daddy’s Antiques

Bonus: The Mystery Show