New York, May 22, 2026, 16:03 EDT
- Qualcomm led U.S. chip stocks higher on Friday, rising about 12% as the PHLX Semiconductor Index gained 2.5%.
- Stellantis expanded a multi-year Qualcomm deal for cockpit, connectivity and driver-assistance technology across next-generation vehicles.
- The rally adds weight to Qualcomm’s push beyond handsets, but memory costs, Apple modem risk and execution in autos remain overhangs.
Qualcomm shares jumped in late U.S. trading on Friday, leading a broader chip rally after Stellantis expanded a multi-year technology deal that gives the San Diego chip designer a bigger role in future vehicles.
The stock was quoted up 11.4% at $237.74 at 3:32 p.m. EDT, after touching $243.00 earlier in the session, Google Finance data showed. The move put Qualcomm within sight of its 52-week high of $247.90.
The timing matters. Investors have been looking for proof that Qualcomm can grow outside its core smartphone-chip business, where demand swings, high memory-chip costs and Apple’s move toward in-house modems have clouded the outlook.
Stellantis and Qualcomm said on Thursday that the automaker would use Snapdragon Digital Chassis systems across next-generation vehicle architectures, including cockpit functions, connectivity and advanced driver-assistance systems, or ADAS — technology that helps cars with tasks such as braking, steering and lane control.
The expanded award includes Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Ride Pilot ADAS platform, which the companies said can scale from active safety features to Level 2+ hands-free driving. The deal also includes a non-binding letter of intent for Stellantis-owned automated driving and simulation company aiMotive to join Qualcomm Technologies.
Ned Curic, Stellantis’ chief engineering and technology officer, said the platform would let the automaker scale connected vehicle capability with “unprecedented speed and efficiency.” Nakul Duggal, Qualcomm’s automotive, industrial and embedded IoT chief, called the expanded relationship a “meaningful inflection point.” Qualcomm
Qualcomm’s surge stood out even in a firm market. Reuters reported that the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rose 2.5%, led by Qualcomm’s 12% jump, while Nvidia slipped 1.6%. The Dow hit an intraday record and the S&P 500 was on track for an eighth straight weekly gain.
The auto deal also fits Stellantis’ own reset. The automaker on Thursday laid out a 60 billion euro strategy, including 60 new models by 2030, and said it was leaning more on outside partners in software and autonomous driving, including Qualcomm and Wayve.
For Qualcomm, autos are becoming less of a side story. In its April 29 fiscal second-quarter release, the company reported $10.6 billion in revenue, GAAP earnings of $6.88 a share and non-GAAP earnings of $2.65 a share. Non-GAAP earnings are adjusted profit figures that strip out some items. Qualcomm also said automotive revenue hit a quarterly record and that combined automotive and internet-of-things revenue rose 20% from a year earlier.
Chief Executive Cristiano Amon has been trying to pull the company deeper into data centers as well. Qualcomm said a custom silicon engagement with a leading hyperscaler — a large cloud-computing operator — was on track for initial shipments later this calendar year, and it plans to update investors on data center and physical artificial-intelligence opportunities at a June 24 investor day.
That puts Qualcomm nearer to markets where Broadcom and Marvell have already gained from custom chips known as ASICs, short for application-specific integrated circuits, which are chips built for a defined computing task. Reuters reported last month that Amon said Qualcomm was working on central processing units, inference accelerators and ASICs for customers.
But the trade is not clean. The Stellantis framework still needs final terms, and Reuters reported that Stellantis investors reacted cautiously to the automaker’s broader plan because of execution risk. In handsets, J.P. Morgan analysts warned the smartphone market was “hardly out of the woods,” while Reuters noted Apple’s in-house modem push remains a threat to Qualcomm revenue after the current licensing agreement expires in 2027. Reuters
