Arm sued Qualcomm in 2022 for allegedly using a lower royalty rate on the Oryon CPU design developed by Nuvia. After a week-long trial, Qualcomm was found not to have violated the licensing agreement agreed upon between the two companies.
The ARM license royalty rate paid by Nuvia was higher. Qualcomm acquired Nuvia in 2021 and the Oryon CPU was developed using a lower license fee, reducing Arm's revenue by up to $30 million.
The jury found Qualcomm not guilty but could not reach a unanimous decision on whether Nuvia violated the agreement with Arm. With this decision, Qualcomm can continue to use Oryon in the Snapdragon X and Snapdragon 8 Elite series of chips. The future of both chips is a little murky after Arm revoked Qualcomm's license last October. If found guilty, Arm asked for the Oryon chip design to be destroyed.
The decision, however, opens the door for Arm to re-file the lawsuit in the future to fully resolve this lawsuit.