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Stand aside, Intel and AMD: Qualcomm is once again heading to Computex with big ambitions to reshape the PC market with its own Arm-based chips.
CEO Cristiano Amon is scheduled to deliver a keynote at the annual trade show, and we expect plenty of announcements, including new chips and more details about Qualcomm’s strategy around AI PCs.
But you’ll need to stay up late if you plan on watching the keynote from the US. The event — which will be live streamed on YouTube from Taipei, Taiwan— is scheduled for Sunday, May 18, at 11 p.m. PT / Monday, May 19 at 2 a.m. ET (video embedded above).
It’s been almost a year since Qualcomm began selling Windows Copilot+ laptops built with Snapdragon X processors. So it’ll be interested to hear what the company has learned since then, and how it plans on bolstering its Windows offerings when competition in the PC chip space is intensifying amid rumors Nvidia might expand into the market.
Qualcomm’s PC processors stand out for using Arm architecture, a sharp contrast to the long-dominant x86 processors from Intel and AMD. Although Arm chips can lack software compatibility, the processors can offer impressive performance, including for AI workloads and GPU tasks. Qualcomm has even boasted that its Snapdragon X chips outperform rival processors from Intel, which has caused some bickering.
But the company's foray into PCs also highlights growing adoption of Arm chips. Apple famously dumped Intel-based processors to pursue its own Arm-based chips for MacBooks, which have received rave reviews for their high performance and long battery life. On top of all this, reports suggest Nvidia might introduce its own Arm-based chips for Windows PCs at Computex.
All of this sets the stage for Qualcomm’s keynote to highlight the escalating rivalry between Arm and x86 in the PC market. Viewers can also expect plenty of talk about generative AI. In a press release, Qualcomm noted that Amon will “share insights on how AI is transforming PC experiences for consumers, enterprises, and in industrial sectors.” This includes demonstrating “how on-device AI is poised to significantly enhance productivity, creativity, and much more.”