Qualcomm “Seeking solutions to chip price surge… Will find compromise between performance and cost”
Qualcomm is joining efforts to ease the chipflation burden on key customers including Samsung Electronics.
The move comes as prices for mobile application processors (AP)—the brain of smartphones—and memory chips have surged in tandem, sharply increasing manufacturing costs for device makers.
“We recognize our customers’ concerns and are exploring solutions,” Chris Patrick, Senior Vice President of Qualcomm, said at a press conference on May 20 in response to questions about soaring semiconductor prices. “We are seeking a balance between performance and cost,” he said, adding that “we are considering approaches such as cross-mounting product lines with adjusted specifications instead of top-tier chips.”
With chip prices rising steeply, some observers predict that Samsung’s in-house Exynos 2700 could account for up to half of the Galaxy S27 lineup in 2027. The Exynos ratio in the S26, released this year, stands at approximately 25%. Kim Sang-pyo, President of Qualcomm Korea, denied the outlook for reduced Snapdragon adoption, stating “nothing has been specifically discussed yet.”
Another key theme of the briefing was highlighting close collaboration with Samsung—a move analysts interpret as a response to Exynos’s resurgence. “Qualcomm is the only company with a truly custom CPU in the Android ecosystem,” Patrick said in a veiled warning. He added: “The era of designing phones and chips separately is over. We are partners sharing a common destiny with customers like Samsung from the initial stages.”
Qualcomm also emphasized the importance of the Korean market. Don McGuire, Senior Vice President of Qualcomm, noted that “Snapdragon brand awareness in Korea stands at 68%, ranking third globally,” and that “61% of consumers perceive it as the standard for premium experiences.” The strategy aims to solidify ecosystem leadership by leveraging Korea’s demanding premium consumer base.
Qualcomm “Seeking solutions to chip price surge… Will find compromise between performance and cost”
