The chipmaker Qualcomm has approached its rival Intel in recent days about the possibility of acquiring the slumping Silicon Valley giant, two people familiar with the matter said Friday, requesting anonymity because the talks were confidential.

Intel’s partnership with AWS is part of the chipmaker’s attempt to play catch-up. The new deal, along with a $3 billion grant from the US government to boost domestic chip making and make chips for the US military, “demonstrates the continued progress we are making to build a world-class foundry business,” Intel said in the statement.