On Thursday, Marvell Technology (MRVL.US) saw its shares surge by more than 5% intraday before settling at a gain of over 3%, trading at $95.95. Sources familiar with the matter revealed that SoftBank Group had earlier this year explored the possibility of acquiring Marvell. If completed, the deal would mark the largest merger in semiconductor industry history.

According to insiders, SoftBank considered the acquisition as part of a strategy to merge Marvell with Arm, the UK-based chip design company under its control. While no active negotiations are currently underway between Marvell and SoftBank, some sources suggest the possibility of renewed discussions remains.

It was noted that Masayoshi Son, the billionaire founder of the Japanese conglomerate, has intermittently evaluated Marvell as a potential acquisition target for years, aligning with his broader bet on AI-driven hardware opportunities. However, sources indicated that SoftBank's approach to Marvell months ago did not result in an agreement on deal terms, as Son often assesses multiple transactions without pursuing most of them.