New IP Agreement to Aid Apple's 5G Dreams Under the new agreement, Apple will pay Imagination a licensing fee to use the latter's extensive intellectual property rights related to graphics and AI, which could be the keys to Apple's initiatives to bring 5G to its flagship iPhone. The iPhone-maker's latest deal with Imagination comes a month after the latter launched the latest generation of its mobile GPU architecture — IMG A-Series GPU — claimed to be the fastest GPU to date. Apple is expected to roll out the 5G wireless-enabled handsets in 2020, with its 14th-generation iPhones. The number of models, however, remains a subject of debate. Apple has been ramping up hiring from Intel ( INTC - Free Report ) and Qualcomm ( QCOM - Free Report ) to work on 5G modems. Last year, the firm acquired Intel's modem unit for $1 billion, in order to design cellular chips for future devices which is considered a win for the company.