Arm, a semiconductor technology licensing firm, said Wednesday that former Qualcomm Chief Executive Paul Jacobs has joined its board of directors — an unexpected move given that Arm and Qualcomm are embroiled in an increasingly contentious legal battle linked to high-performance processors.
Jacobs served as Qualcomm's chief executive from 2005 to 2014, and then as executive chairman until 2018. He left the board in March 2018 after exploring steps to take Qualcomm private following a failed hostile takeover attempt from rival Broadcom.
In an interview, Jacobs said he knows Arm well from being a customer for years, both at Qualcomm and his current wireless technology company, XCOM Labs. He sees demand for Arm's chip architecture expanding beyond smartphones and into other industries, such as cars and data centers. As a member of Arm's board, he can provide significant public company experience as the United Kingdom-based firm prepares for an initial public stock offering.
