At CES 2023, Qualcomm's (QCOM) all in on its auto business. The company announced the Snapdragon Ride Flex SoC, a car that features a processor chip that can handle both assisted driving and entertainment.
San Diego-based Qualcomm's chips are in a wide range of products, from mobile phones and laptops to VR devices and connected cars. The company's been particularly active in growing its auto business over the last few years and, in September, said that its auto business "pipeline" had expanded to $30 billion.
Qualcomm also noted that it's expanding its partnership with connected car supplier Visteon (VC).
“Through our Snapdragon Cockpit Platforms, we are empowering the automotive industry transition to a more intelligent, personalized and connected in-vehicle experience,” Nakul Duggal, SVP and Qualcomm Auto GM, said in a statement. “We look forward to continuing our efforts with Visteon in bringing advanced capabilities and functionalities to next generation vehicles through SmartCore and our Snapdragon Cockpit Platforms.”
Safety first
Additionally, Qualcomm announced a number of R&D efforts tied to improving road safety and infrastructure. For example, the chipmaker has linked up with the Applied Information, T-Mobile (TMUS) and the city of Bellevue, Wash., to develop a cloud-connected pedestrian crosswalk.
“Infrastructure that understands a pedestrian’s intent to enter a mid-block crosswalk could be augmented with notifications sent to drivers to use caution when approaching the crosswalk," T-Mobile Connected Vehicles Product Management Kirk Neibert said in a statement. "Working with Qualcomm will allow us to deploy these types of innovative solutions that can have an immediate impact on road safety.”
The chip industry has had a rough year in the markets. Consumers have been buying fewer PCs, and what was once a chip shortage became a chip surplus. This reality that's rattled the industry has extended to Qualcomm, whose shares have dropped about 40% over the last twelve months – a figure that's slightly better than competitors Intel (INTC) and Nvidia (NVDA).
Allie Garfinkle is a Senior Tech Reporter at Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter at @agarfinks.
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