Amid the passion of the wild election, U.S. chip giant Qualcomm reported an upbeat first-quarter (ended December 31) sales forecast, with revenue rising between USD 10.5 billion and USD 11.3 billion, eyeing for an over 10% quarter-over-quarter growth at most. The strong momentum, according to a report by Reuters, could be attributed to the smartphone market recovery led by China.

Boosted by New Smartphone Launches led by Xiaomi, Oppo

It is worth noting that China remains Qualcomm’s largest market, and the momentum is driven by new smartphone releases from brands like Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo, according to the report. Qualcomm has derived 46% of its revenue in its most recent fiscal year from customers with headquarters in China, Reuters says.

A previous report by the South China Morning Post suggests that China’s smartphone maker Xiaomi will be the first to equip Qualcomm’s newly-released Snapdragon 8 Elite with its Xiaomi 15 series at the end of October, followed by other local smartphone brands such as Honor, Oppo’s OnePlus and Realme.

As the smartphone market starts to rebound following a challenging 2023, Qualcomm’s positive outlook is said to be driven by consumers upgrading devices for AI applications like chatbots and image generation tools, Reuters notes.

Business Expansion beyond Apple Remains Key  

On the other hand, Qualcomm is working hard to diversify its revenue streams in anticipation of the eventual end of its profitable partnership with Apple, which is developing its own modem chips to replace Qualcomm’s. According to Reuters, though the agreement to supply chips to Apple lasts until at least 2026, attention is on whether Qualcomm’s expansion into laptops and AI-driven data centers will grow swiftly enough to balance any future reductions in Apple-related revenue.

Regarding the potential impact if President-elect Donald Trump does impose broad tariffs of 10% to 20% on nearly all imports, with potential tariffs exceeding 60% on Chinese goods, Reuters notes that if higher tariffs were applied to chips from Taiwan, though rather unlikely, could incentivize Qualcomm to shift manufacturing to the U.S.

For the fourth quarter (ended September 30), Qualcomm posted a net income of USD 2.92 billion, or USD 2.59 per share, marking a significant increase from last year’s USD 1.49 billion, or USD 1.23 per share. The company’s total revenue for fiscal 2024 reached USD 38.9 billion, a 9% rise compared to 2023, according to its press release.

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• [News] Qualcomm Rumored to Decide Its Next Move Regarding Potential Intel Acquisition after US Election

(Photo credit: Qualcomm)

Rumors have been circulating for a while that China’s tech giants are capable of manufacturing chips in advanced nodes even without the need for extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines by ASML, and that local foundry SMIC has reportedly produced 5nm chips for Huawei. Now there seems to be a new member joining the ranks of the elite. According to the reports by MyDrivers and Wccftech, Xiaomi has successfully taped out its first 3nm SoC.

Though more details are yet to be confirmed, Wccftech indicates that it is possible that Xiaomi will launch the 3nm chipset sometime next year.

Xiaomi, according to the reports, has been developing its own custom chipsets for years. The first product is believed to be Surge S1, which was released with the Mi 5c smartphone in 2017. The report by MyDrivers suggests that the Surge S1, built on 28nm node, is a 64-bit octa-core processor.

Following the Surge S1, Xiaomi went on to develop several chips, reportedly including the Surge C1, Surge G1, and Surge T1, according to MyDrivers.

The information of Xiaomi’s recent success in its 3nm chip tape-out is reportedly disclosed by Tang Jianguo, Chief Economist of Beijing Municipal Bureau of Economy and Information Technology, at Beijing Satellite TV, MyDrivers notes. Citing Tang’s remarks, Wccftech indicates that the achievement is described as a historic milestone for China.

Wccftech further notes that as companies like Huawei have been prohibited from doing business with TSMC or Samsung due to U.S. trade sanctions, if Xiaomi does have reached the tape-out stage for its 3nm chipset, it could enable other Chinese companies, including Huawei, to leverage this technology in their devices.

However, more details are yet to be confirmed, as there are no updates on whether the SoC will use TSMC’s N3E process or the more advanced N3P node, according to Wccftech. Additionally, details about the chipset’s CPU cluster, GPU, or whether it will feature ARM designs or a custom architecture remain unknown. Therefore, it would be better to approach this rumor with caution.

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• [News] Xiaomi Reportedly to Launch In-House Processor in 2025, Manufactured with TSMC’s 4nm
• [News] SMIC Reportedly to Manufacture 5nm Chips for Huawei Without EUV Machinery

(Photo credit: Xiaomi)

Huawei’s Mate XT, being the world’s first tri-fold smartphone, has created a buzz as it got over 4 million preorders even before the formal launch. However, the tech giant might not enjoy the monopoly for long. Citing a recent patent filing published by China’s State Intellectual Property Office, a report by Gizmochina notes that Xiaomi is also working on the technology.

Earlier In August, Weibo tipster “Smart Pikachu” also brought up Xiaomi’s progress on this new design, while rumors suggest that Xiaomi could release the tri-fold phone as early as 2025.

Gizmochina suggests that though the patent itself does not disclose the model name, it does reveal a design featuring a Z-shaped fold, which is similar to that of Huawei Mate XT.

To elaborate, the report notes that the model is equipped with a horizontally positioned rear camera island, which is narrower than that of the Xiaomi Mix Fold 4. The image shown in the patent application also suggests that the tri-fold phone will feature three rear cameras, compared to the four found on the Mix Fold 4 model.

According to Gizmochina, Xiaomi’s tri-fold device may be slightly thicker than the Huawei Mate XT, which has a 12.8mm thickness when folded. However, there’s still time for Xiaomi to refine the design, the report notes.

It is interesting to note that this isn’t the first time the market heard about Xiaomi’s ambition on a tri-fold phone, as related patents could be dated back to 2019, the report indicates. However, the latest patent features a completely new design with a dual inward folding mechanism, suggesting that Xiaomi has been exploring various possibilities and folding techniques for some time.

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• [News] Huawei’s Tri-Fold Phone Revealed Hours after Apple, with Pre-Orders Reportedly Exceeding 4 Million
• [News] A Comparison between Apple iPhone 16 and Huawei Mate XT

(Photo credit: Huawei)

According to a report from wccftech,  previous claims about Xiaomi abandoning the development of its smartphone processor due to high costs were incorrect. Instead, Xiaomi is expected to release its custom solution in the first half of 2025, with its performance rumored to be equivalent to Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, which was released two years ago. The chip is said to be manufactured with TSMC’s 4nm process.

The chip, as per wccftech citing sources, will be produced using TSMC’s N4P process,  which is a generation behind the Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 and MediaTek’s Dimensity 9400. However, as the shipment volume might be not as high, it is reasonable that Xiaomi might not need to opt for the most advanced manufacturing process.

Although TSMC has already introduced its 3nm process and is advancing towards 2nm, its 4nm N4P process is still competitive, as both the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 and Dimensity 9300 are produced with N4P.

The sources also indicate that the performance of Xiaomi’s in-house chip is similar to that of Snapdragon 8 Gen 1’s, while the 5G modem chip will be supplied by another Chinese company, Unisoc. Xiaomi’s move towards developing its own smartphone chips is expected to its reduce reliance on Qualcomm and MediaTek.

Shanghai-based fabless chip firm Unisoc, is specialized in areas including 2G/3G/4G/5G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, TV FM, satellite communications and other related technologies, according to its website.

Per a previous report from wccftech, Qualcomm executives had hinted that the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 will be more expensive than the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, and they may also charge partners for the 5G modem chip. By developing its own chips, Xiaomi can gain valuable experience and gradually reduce its dependence on Qualcomm.

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• [News] MediaTek and Xiaomi Opened a Joint Lab, the First Product with Stellar Performance Unveiled
• [News] China’s Xiaomi and Unisoc Claim Domestic 4nm Mobile Processors Coming Soon

(Photo credit: Xiaomi)

On July 8, Xiaomi Chairman Lei Jun announced on Weibo that the new generation Xiaomi smartphone smart factory in Changping, Beijing, has officially started operations. According to a report from Economic Daily News, the factory has a total investment of CNY 2.4 billion (roughly USD 330 million) and a construction area of 81,000 square meters, with an annual production capacity of 10 million flagship smartphones. Lei Jun also revealed that the upcoming Xiaomi MIX Fold 4/Flip foldable phones, set to be released this month, will be manufactured at this facility.

This year, Xiaomi has completed two smart factories: the Changping smartphone factory and the Yizhuang automobile factory.

In fact, information about Xiaomi’s new folding phone, the MIX Fold 4, has recently been leaked on Chinese internet platforms. Digital bloggers previously revealed that this phone is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip.

Reportedly,  this factory is said to be Xiaomi’s first large-scale self-owned smartphone factory. Its launch marks a crucial milestone in Xiaomi’s smart manufacturing journey.

According to the report, the factory boasts a 96.8% self-developed packaging equipment rate, 100% self-developed factory software rate, and holds over 500 patents. It focuses on producing flagship smartphones and operates 24/7, with a daily production capacity of up to 30,000 smartphones.

For the smartphone production in the first quarter of 2024, TrendForce reports that the global top six manufacturers by production market share were Samsung, Apple, Xiaomi, OPPO, Transsion, and Vivo. Together, these companies accounted for nearly 80% of the market share.

Xiaomi (including Xiaomi, Redmi, and Poco) has moved past last year’s high inventory issues, achieving a total production of 41.1 million units in the first quarter and ranking third globally in market share.

Xiaomi Group Partner and President Lu Weibing revealed that the Changping factory is Xiaomi’s first truly smart factory. Key verifications for the Xiaomi 14 Gulf Blue Limited Edition and the craftsmanship of the Xiaomi 14 Ultra were all carried out here.

On the other hand, per another report from Securities Times, Xiaomi’s automobile factory in Yizhuang, Beijing, started dual-shift production in June, with monthly deliveries exceeding 10,000 vehicles.

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• [News] MediaTek and Xiaomi Opened a Joint Lab, the First Product with Stellar Performance Unveiled
• [News] China’s Xiaomi and Unisoc Claim Domestic 4nm Mobile Processors Coming Soon

(Photo credit: Xiaomi)