One of the big turning points in the history of the industry was IBM choosing the Intel 8088 over the Motorola 68000. Given that most people outside IBM considered the 68000 preferable, there has been much speculation about the reasons for the decision, with candidates ranging from cost to pressure from the mainframe division worried about the PC being too capable, to the Motorola support chips not being ready in time.
I just came across a very interesting paragraph in this Techspot article about the PC's history.
IBM's original plan had been to design the personal computer around Motorola's 6800 processor at its Austin, Texas research center. IBM marketing had arranged for the PC to be sold through the stores of Sears, Roebuck & Co., and the deal teetered in the balance as Motorola's 6800 along with its support chips slipped in schedule.
A contingency plan named Project Chess was set up to run concurrently with the Austin design...
Obviously 6800 is a typo for 68000; let's take that as read and look at the claim being made.
The author is not only subscribing to the 'Motorola support chips not ready in time' explanation, but claiming IBM had gone so far as to already choose the 68000 before the schedule issue scuppered their original choice.
Is that correct? Are there any historical documents that can confirm or refute the claim?