REPORT: Arm is sensationally canceling the license that allowed Qualcomm to make Snapdragon chips, which power everything from Microsoft's Copilot+ PCs to Samsung's Galaxy smartphones and tablets (Update: Qualcomm, Arm respond)

Snapdragon X.

What you need to know

• A new report suggests Arm Holdings PLC is ending a contract with Qualcomm Inc. that allows the firm to build chip designs based on Arm technology.
• The cancelation notice lasts for only 60 days, and escalates an on-going dispute between the UK-based chip architecture giant Arm and US chip maker Qualcomm for processors that are in everything from TVs to smartphones to Microsoft's new Copilot+ PCs.
• If the cancelation goes through, it could upend the smartphone industry, given that Snapdragon processors power the vast majority of Android smartphones and tablets, as well as emerging Arm-based Windows PCs like the Surface Pro 11.
• Qualcomm and Arm have been in a legal dispute for a couple of years now, and this is the latest escalation in a battle that shows no signs of slowing down.