The Qualcomm announced on Tuesday that it expects new markets would add $22 billion in its annual revenues by 2029. Part of growth, the company said, it will rake in approximately $4 billion from its new PC chip division. For Qualcomm, the development is a first as it tries out its first foray into PC processors earlier this year when it launched Snapdragon X for Windows devices.
The forecast is part of Qualcomm’s broader strategy to diversify its revenue streams under the leadership of CEO Cristiano Amon, who took over the company in 2021 with a clear mandate to reduce its reliance on smartphone chips. Even though Qualcomm remains dominant in the smartphone sector, with $24.86 billion in handset sales in fiscal 2024, accounting for about 75% of its overall chip business, the company is aggressively seeking growth in other industries.
Besides PC, Qualcomm is also targeting to grow 175% in auto revenues by 2029, which is estimated at $8 billion in revenues. This flow is largely attributed to contracts already secured in the sector. Qualcomm also plans to generate an additional $4 billion in revenue from industrial chips and $2 billion from chips for extended reality (XR) devices, such as headsets. Other chip sales, in the form of wireless headphones and tablets, will contribute another $4 billion.
The strategic focus of the company is on exploring new markets like automotive, PCs, and virtual reality by leveraging its advanced technologies developed over years of mobile chip innovation.
Qualcomm views its total addressable market as potentially as large as $900 billion. . Amon restated that the company’s strategy, launched in 2021, is still unchanged. Qualcomm’s mobile chip business remains healthy; however, it faces an overarching threat that Apple may stop buying Qualcomm parts altogether by 2027.
Despite this, Qualcomm remains confident that its expanding portfolio in automotive, industrial, and XR markets will more than offset any potential losses from Apple.
In the fiercely competitive PC chip market, Qualcomm seeks to compete with Intel, the current leader with a 70% market share. Amon sees an opportunity, particularly following Apple’s shift from Intel processors to its own in 2020. The forecast also signals growing potential for the XR market, with Qualcomm supplying chips for major players like Meta in the virtual reality space.
Furthermore, Qualcomm is positioning itself as an “edge AI” company, highlighting its ability to run advanced artificial intelligence directly on devices, a shift from cloud-based AI solutions powered by companies like Nvidia. This strategic direction suggests Qualcomm could benefit from the ongoing AI boom in the future.
