The American chip-maker Qualcomm has recently made it to the headlines for expanding its lineup for car computing chips. These chips will be reportedly separated into tiers of different prices – a similar model that goes for the company’s chips which are created for budget-friendly and premium smartphones.
According to sources familiar with the matter, Qualcomm is providing the chips for dashboard displays and infotainment systems and will also be trying to fight its way into the rapidly emerging self-driving car systems.
As reported by Reuters, Cristiano Amon, President, Qualcomm was quoted saying that the company is planning to have a tier of products for every single model of car, hinting that they are in the automotive market to stay.
If industry experts are to be believed, Qualcomm’s reach into the automotive industry is more important for the company, as it’s the biggest chip market, and the growth of mobile phones is coming to a stagnation point.
The news comes along the heels of Qualcomm fighting off a hostile takeover bid by Broadcom, Inc., last year. The company promised its investors that it would be looking for new markets such as the automobiles for secure future. The effort became more obvious after the Chinese watchdogs blocked the chipmaker’s already planned USD 44 billion acquisition of NXP Semiconductors NV in 2018.
In addition, Qualcomm reveled that it was working with Amazon and plans to offer in-vehicle experiences using Amazon’s virtual assistant Alexa. The duo is working in tandem to further put Prime Video, Amazon Music, Fire TV, and Amazon’s audiobook business Audible on the car computers.