Qualcomm shares jump on report of OpenAI tie-up for AI smartphone processors

Qualcomm shares jumped 13% in premarket trading on Monday after an analyst said OpenAI was working with the chip designer and Taiwan’s MediaTek to develop smartphone processors, News.Az reports, citing Reuters.

Qualcomm and MediaTek are co-development partners for an AI-first smartphone that the ChatGPT creator is planning, with mass production likely in 2028, TF International Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said in a post on social media platform X.

China’s Luxshare, an Apple supplier, is the exclusive system design and manufacturing partner for the device, according to Kuo, who is based in Taiwan and known for his accurate predictions about Apple’s products.

The companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

OpenAI has been exploring consumer AI devices for years and last May acquired Jony Ive’s startup io Products for $6.5 billion, bringing in the former Apple designer to lead the efforts.

However, media reports have indicated that the planned device would not be a smartphone. Altman told employees it would be a “third core device” alongside phones and laptops, according to a Wall Street Journal report last year.

The loss-making startup has also been scaling back side projects to focus on coding tools for businesses—one of the few areas in AI with clear commercial traction.

Launching a smartphone would place OpenAI in direct competition with deep-pocketed rivals Apple and Samsung, which together hold around 40% of the global smartphone market.

It would also reinforce expectations that smartphones will remain central to daily life in the AI era, especially after Reuters reported last month that Amazon is planning a renewed push into the handset market.

Apple shares fell 1.7%. The company last week appointed long-time hardware chief John Ternus as CEO, signaling that devices will continue to be central to its strategy even as it works to strengthen its AI capabilities.

News.Az 

By Nijat Babayev