Prime Highlights
- Qualcomm launched two new AI chips, AI200 and AI250, marking a major move beyond its traditional smartphone business into the data center and AI computing market.
- The company’s partnership with Saudi-backed startup Humain highlights its growing global reach and strengthens its position in the competitive AI chip industry.
Key Facts
- Qualcomm’s AI200 chip will launch in 2026 and AI250 in 2027, both designed to improve memory handling and AI task efficiency.
- The company’s shares rose 20% after the announcement, driven by investor optimism about its AI and data center expansion.
Background
Qualcomm launched two new artificial intelligence (AI) chips for data centers, taking a big step beyond its usual smartphone business. The announcement boosted its shares by 20%, showing that investors are very interested in its AI plans.
The new chips, called AI200 and AI250, handle memory better and run AI tasks more efficiently. Qualcomm said the AI200 will be available in 2026 and the AI250 in 2027. These chips will support popular AI frameworks and are aimed at helping companies lower their operating costs.
With global demand for AI technology growing fast, many firms are investing in chips that can support large language models, chatbots, and generative AI tools. To meet this demand, Qualcomm also revealed new server racks built with its AI chips, similar to the systems already offered by Nvidia and AMD.
While Nvidia continues to lead the AI chip market, Qualcomm’s partnership with Humain, an AI startup backed by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, could strengthen its position. Humain plans to use 200 megawatts of Qualcomm’s AI racks starting in 2026.
“Qualcomm’s entry and its new deal in Saudi Arabia show that the AI industry is becoming more diverse and global,” said Joe Tigay, portfolio manager at the Rational Equity Armor Fund.
Known as the world’s largest supplier of smartphone modem chips, Qualcomm has been expanding into new areas like personal computers, where it now competes with Intel and AMD to provide chips for Windows laptops. The new AI chips mark another major step in this broader business shift.
