Qualcomm wants to be the chip inside whatever replaces your smartphone, and it just announced two products toward that end

Qualcomm's CEO, Cristiano Amon, announced on Tuesday that the company is exploring over 40 innovative AI wearable devices, ranging from jewelry to smart glasses. This bold move highlights Qualcomm's vision that the future of computing may not revolve around smartphones. To support this vision, Qualcomm introduced two groundbreaking products: the Snapdragon Reality Elite platform for mixed reality glasses and the Scalable Turnkey AI-Ready Toolkit (START). The Snapdragon Reality Elite aims to enhance on-device AI capabilities, boasting impressive improvements in performance—up to 60% in GPU, 30% in CPU, and an astounding 160% in NPU performance compared to prior versions. One of the standout features of the Snapdragon Reality Elite is its ability to execute a 3-billion-parameter language model at 45 tokens per second, enabling rapid AI interactions. This platform also enhances head and hand tracking and improves see-through functionalities. With support for 4.4K per-eye resolution at 90 frames per second, users can expect a clearer and smoother visual experience, critical for reducing discomfort often associated with prolonged headset use. The Snapdragon Reality Elite is designed to power two types of devices: standalone video-see-through (VST) headsets that overlay digital content onto a real-world camera feed, and lightweight, tethered optical-see-through (OST) glasses that seamlessly integrate digital imagery into the user’s line of sight. Notable devices set to utilize this technology include XREAL Project Aura, showcased at Google I/O, and an upcoming offering from Play for Dream. On the other hand, START includes an augmented reality chip, a comprehensive software platform, companion applications, and a white-label program to expedite the market entry for hardware manufacturers. This program features three reference designs: an audio and camera solution akin to Meta's Ray-Ban smart glasses, a monocular display, and a binocular display. Inspecs and O’Neill, under TitanFlex, are among the first collaborators in this initiative. Amon's insights shared with CNBC reveal the strategic thinking behind these announcements. He emphasized the potential for a new wave of hardware startups focused on novel form factors, which could significantly impact established smartphone giants like Apple and Samsung. "There will be substantial experimentation with diverse form factors," Amon stated, indicating that Qualcomm aims to establish itself as the core silicon provider for the next generation of computing devices. With the START white-label program, Qualcomm is lowering barriers for new technology entrants, paving the way for innovative devices that users can wear daily, providing them with context and connectivity to AI agents.