September 8, 2025

Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon has given a big thumbs down to Intel’s chipmaking skills for now. In a recent chat with Bloomberg Television’s Bloomberg Tech, Amon said, “Intel is not an option today.” He explained that Qualcomm relies on Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) and Samsung Electronics for making its chips because Intel’s tech isn’t advanced enough yet. But Amon also left a door open, saying, "We would like Intel to be an option." Qualcomm would consider Intel if its manufacturing improves. Just like many others in the chip world, Qualcomm designs chips but outsources production. Intel, which used to be the world’s biggest chipmaker, is now fighting back by trying to attract customers like Qualcomm. Intel wants to make chips for others, not just itself. Meanwhile, Qualcomm isn’t sitting still. The San Diego-based firm makes most of its money from Android phone processors but is pushing hard into new markets like cars. Qualcomm told investors it expects to grab $22 billion from automotive and connected gadgets by 2029. On the same day, Qualcomm announced it has developed a self-driving tech called Snapdragon Ride Pilot that’s going into BMW AG’s new iX3 electric SUV. This product brings super strong computing power — as mighty as a data center server — but uses very little energy. Amon said it can either help drivers or take over most driving tasks, all while saving battery juice. He said, “We design all of our chips assuming there’s a battery on the other side, not plugged into the wall.” That means you get great computing power without killing your car’s driving range. Unlike some chipmakers making wild claims about self-driving cars taking over soon, Qualcomm has taken a careful path. They first built strong chips for car infotainment systems and are now expanding into the brains of self-driving cars. This smart strategy is helping Qualcomm enter the fast-growing automotive tech world with solid roots. With Intel still behind in production tech, Qualcomm is playing it safe with trusted partners TSMC and Samsung while reaping big rewards in the booming car tech arena. The chip race just got spicy, and Qualcomm is revving up for the long drive ahead!

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Tags: Qualcomm, Intel, Tsmc, Samsung, Automotive chips, Snapdragon ride pilot,