GoKawiilQualcomm is planning to raise its prices by a percentage in the double digits across its products, according to Bloomberg. The company is one of the biggest makers of smartphone processors in the world and dominates the Android landscape, with most companies using its products to power their flagship models. Among the devices that are powered by Qualcomm processors are Samsung's Galaxy series phones, including its latest foldables, the the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, Fold 8 and Flip 8. Its processors also power Microsoft CoPilot+ PCs, as well as wearables like smart glasses in Meta's Ray-Ban collection. As you can tell, Qualcomm's price hikes could have a big impact on pricing across brands and devices in several categories.
Bloomberg says Qualcomm has already sent letters to its customers informing them about the upcoming changes. It intends to apply its new, higher prices to products shipped after September 1. Qualcomm reportedly told its clients that it can no longer absorb the higher costs of components from its suppliers and that it had already tried getting alternative components from new sources. The company's chips are mostly manufactured by TSMC, which is currently suffering from supply chain constraints.
The company, like most firms in the tech industry today, is feeling the effects of memory and component shortages caused by the immense demand from AI data center buildouts. In addition to having to absorb the higher costs of components, its sales have apparently been suffering lately. As Bloomberg explains, Qualcomm's sales have been down this year, because its clients haven't been able to produce as many devices due to the shortages. That said, it posted a revenue above forecast for the second quarter of 2026.