COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- A corporation with a large footprint in the smartphone market is thinking about a timeline to buy Intel, the company behind central Ohio's multibillion-dollar computer chip factory. Qualcomm, known for its Snapdragon processors powering flagship Android phones from brands like Samsung and Motorola, previously approached Intel about an acquisition, Reuters reported Sept. 20. Sources told the outlet that Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon was personally taking part in negotiations with Intel, led by CEO Pat Gelsinger. What to know: Trial begins for former police officer who fatally shot Andre Hill But since the news broke about Qualcomm's interest in taking over Intel -- a company trying to steady itself despite financial losses, mass layoffs and a dropping stock price -- the smartphone chipmaker has pumped the brakes. People familiar with the dealings told Bloomberg on Wednesday that Qualcomm will likely wait until after the November presidential election before going after Intel. The pause could be thanks to Qualcomm's wariness after a 2018 Trump administration axing of its merger with Broadcom, which stemmed from national security concerns about the new owner. The sources told Bloomberg that Qualcomm wanted "greater clarity" on the antitrust landscape, as well as the United States' relationship with China, before moving on Intel. Intel's precarious situation comes as the company was trying to spin up multiple semiconductor fabrication plants, including one under construction in New Albany. Instead, the tech corporation will spin off the entire foundry division and the chipmaking factories under it into a new company, becoming a subsidiary. While the central Ohio site has been delayed three to five years past its original planned launch in 2025, some Intel projects, like a planned fabrication plant in Israel, have been halted altogether. A takeover of Intel could mean Qualcomm is entering new territory in terms of chip design; Intel is known for creating processors under the x86 and x86-64 architectures, while Qualcomm's Snapdragon series is based on an architecture known as ARM. It's not immediately clear what the smartphone chipmaker would do with Intel's fabricators in a takeover. Race for the White House nearly tied, new national poll shows Not everyone is convinced the potential for a deal holds weight, thanks to Intel's complex licensing arrangement with fellow x86 powerhouse, AMD. PCWorld's Brad Chacos wrote that a new owner would be forced to renegotiate the pair's patent agreement that allows them both to make CPUs with the 64-bit version of the x86 architecture. Decades ago, Intel developed the x86 architecture -- originally 32-bit -- but AMD is responsible for creating the 64-bit version, on top of Intel's design, that is found in the majority of desktops and laptops today. Still, Qualcomm has already been making waves with Windows laptops that ditch Intel and AMD's x86 designs, and instead are powered by Snapdragon processors. And Intel had already lost ground with Apple. The iPhone company previously powered its Macbooks with Intel x86 processors, but began a bet on a homegrown ARM future in 2020 with its own M1 chips.