Qualcomm Takes on Intel with New AI-Powered PC Chips
US-based chip maker, Qualcomm has unveiled a new AI-powered PC processor. Qualcomm’s AI PC chip boosts the company’s efforts to overturn Intel’s dominance in the PC processor market.
According to CNBC, the Qualcomm AI chip is designed for computers that run on Windows operating systems. The chip is designed to support AI processes without reducing battery life on PC devices.
The new processor widens Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X plus 8-core processor chip product line. Launched this past year, Snapdragon X series chips were designed for PCs that cost as low as $700.
Shift to PCs
For a long time, Qualcomm has been designing smartphone chips. Its clients include the world’s largest smartphone makers like Samsung. This year, the chip maker decided to step up its efforts.
Qualcomm made this decision after Microsoft announced plans to introduce computers with advanced chips that run AI features on Windows without draining battery life. The big tech says it will be launching Copilot+ PCs that include a Surface Laptop and a Surface Pro tablet with Qualcomm chips. The Copilot+ PCs will run AI tasks without connecting to the internet.
Qualcomm says its entry into the PC space is part of its wider diversification strategy. Speaking on CNBC, Qualcomm CEO, Cristiano Amon said,
“We are on a journey to diversify and make sure our technology is now expanding into other markets.”
Amon says the PC market is changing in two fundamental ways. One is the convergence of smartphones and PCs where users expect to get the same experience on both ends. Second is the convergence of desktop computers with AI.
A Timely Move
Industry analysts find Qualcomm’s shift to PCs to be key and timely. The push towards on-device AI is an important theme that works for the company. This means AI applications are processed on the hardware as opposed to accessing them through the internet. The chip maker has developed smartphone processors that do this for a long time.
“Since the AI boom happened last year, everything has been centered around AI which works well for Qualcomm because they have been ahead in the low-powered AI device experiences on mobile. Translating that to the PC form factor was not that difficult. The support of Microsoft has also been important for Qualcomm to hit the mainstream in PCs since Windows is one of the world’s biggest operating systems. The stars have aligned for Qualcomm,” Counterpoint Research Partner, Neil Shah said.
Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X series chips are energy-efficient. They are designed to support complex applications. Their architecture is important to extending battery life for devices that will run on Qualcomm’s new PC processor.
The Roadmap
Qualcomm is currently focusing on growing its AI-focused Snapdragon X chip series to personal computing devices.
“It’s about bringing AI PCs to the mainstream. We see a great opportunity to expand your desktop market from scale. Next, we’re going to see mini desktops from Qualcomm as well, and we’re going to continue to add products and a roadmap eventually to have the full range of products,” Amon said.
Leading PC manufacturers are already using Snapdragon X series chips in their devices. For instance, Lenovo has already unveiled Co-pilot+ PCs that use Qualcomm chips and run on the Windows operating system.
Growing Competition
The chip manufacturing industry is getting more competitive by the day. Qualcomm isn’t the only chip giant that has unveiled new chips in recent months. In July, Amazon Web Services (AWS) launched a new non-ai graviton4 chip with higher computing power and memory.
Huawei Technologies also announced plans to launch a new Ascend 910C AI Chip in the Chinese market last month. The new chip will challenge Nvidia AI chips in the Asian country. Amazon’s non-AI chip may not compete with Qualcomm’s AI processors. However, Huawei’s AI chip could give Qualcomm a run for its money if the Chinese company decides to enter the PC market.
But stiff competition is much closer home. In response to Qualcomm’s unveiling of PC chips, Intel has launched the Intel Core Ultra 200V processor series. Intel says the new processors are power-efficient and are designed to power AI on personal computers. In what appeared to be an intensifying AI chip battle, Intel launched the Xeon 6 AI processors for servers and Lunar Lake chips for AI-powered PCs in June this year.
Microsoft also said it will be introducing Co-pilot+ PCs with AMD and Intel chips to the market later. While Qualcomm will have forged ahead by the time this happens, it will certainly tighten the competition.
