Apple is developing three cellular modems to replace Qualcomm for iPhones and iPads

The quest for its own modem chipset continues to stretch out for Apple as a new report suggests that the company is developing three cellular modems to replace Qualcomm’s solution for upcoming next-gen iPhones and iPad devices.

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported that Apple is working on three modems that go by the name (internally) – Sinope, Ganymede, and Prometheus.

Sinope is designed for the initial use case in the next iPhone SE model, released in 2025. It could also be used in iPhone 17 slim and entry-level iPad. This new modem won’t be as powerful as Qualcomm’s therefore, we will still see, the main iPhone lineup keep on using Qualcomm’s solution.

Qualcomm Snapdragon Modem (source – Qualcomm)

Ganymede will be used for iPhone 18 lineup in 2026 and high-end iPad models. This will support mmWave connectivity and other features to compete with Qualcomm’s modem.

Prometheus will launch with 2027’s iPhone 19 device and iPad models, this is expected to beat Qualcomm’s modem technologies with AI features.