If the deal goes through it could see Chipzilla walking away from the connected home division. Intel’s connected home business makes chips that enable WiFi and manage data traffic for consumers. The chips provide wireless connections in home routers and gateways. Its rivals include Broadcom and Qualcomm.

So far the deal is all rumours and no one is saying, anything official.

Intel is looking at reducing its footprint in areas where it isn’t competitive, Chief Executive Officer Bob Swan has said. The company sold its smartphone modem business to Apple in a $1 billion deal last year. Swan has pointed to the money-losing memory business as an area where he might look for a partnership.

MaxLinear provides broadband and networking semiconductors.

The connected home initiative is part of an attempt to make sure Intel’s computing chips find their way into the increasing number of smart gadgets being used in households.