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Qualcomm CEO identifies DRAM supply as primary bottleneck for fiscal year handset market
Wednesday, February 4, 2026 at 09:34 PM
Qualcomm's CEO indicates that DRAM availability will be the primary constraint determining the size of the handset market for the current fiscal year, impacting overall business scale.
Context
Qualcomm reported record Q1 FY26 revenues of $12.3 billion, yet shares fell after management warned that global memory shortages would weigh on near-term growth. CEO Cristiano Amon noted that soaring demand for AI data center hardware is draining memory supplies, forcing handset manufacturers—particularly in China—to scale back production. Consequently, Qualcomm projected Q2 revenue between $10.2 billion and $11.0 billion, missing analyst estimates. This supply chain friction is expected to define the handset market's scale through the current fiscal year.
Despite these headwinds, the company remains on track for its FY 2029 revenue goals, including a $22 billion target for automotive and IoT. Management highlighted resilient demand for premium smartphones, which continue to adopt advanced on-device AI. By prioritizing high-margin segments and long-term diversification, Qualcomm aims to navigate current volatility while maintaining its trajectory toward significant non-handset growth by the end of the decade.
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