New York, May 22, 2026, 16:03 EDT
- Qualcomm jumped 12% Friday, helping send U.S. chip stocks up. The PHLX Semiconductor Index gained 2.5%.
- Stellantis said it will extend its multi-year agreement with Qualcomm to cover cockpit hardware, in-car connectivity and driver-assist features in new models.
- Qualcomm’s recent rally supports its drive to expand away from phones, but the company still faces concerns about memory prices, risk from its Apple modem business and meeting targets in autos.
Qualcomm shares rallied Friday in late U.S. trading, outpacing gains across the chip sector after Stellantis said it broadened a multi-year tech deal giving the San Diego chipmaker a larger presence in future cars.
Qualcomm shares gained 11.4% to $237.74 at 3:32 p.m. EDT, according to Google Finance. The stock reached $243.00 earlier, moving close to its 52-week high of $247.90.
Timing is key. Investors want evidence that Qualcomm can expand beyond its main smartphone-chip segment. That business faces swings in demand, high memory-chip costs and uncertainty after Apple started making its own modems.
Stellantis will use Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Digital Chassis for its next-gen car platforms, the companies said Thursday. The system covers cockpit, connectivity, and ADAS features—helping with braking, steering, and lane assist.
Stellantis and Qualcomm are expanding their partnership, with Stellantis set to use Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Ride Pilot ADAS platform. The companies said the platform can scale from active safety up to Level 2+ hands-free driving. Also in the deal: a non-binding letter of intent for aiMotive, Stellantis’s automated driving and simulation unit, to join Qualcomm Technologies.
Ned Curic, chief engineering and technology officer at Stellantis, said the platform will help the automaker ramp up connected vehicle offerings faster and more efficiently than before. Qualcomm’s Nakul Duggal, who heads automotive, industrial and embedded IoT, said the deepened partnership marks a “meaningful inflection point.” Qualcomm
Qualcomm jumped 12%, leading gains in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index as it rose 2.5%, according to Reuters. Nvidia dropped 1.6%. The Dow touched an intraday high, and the S&P 500 was heading for an eighth week in a row of gains.
Stellantis’ reset meshes with the new auto deal. On Thursday, the company announced a 60 billion euro plan and promised 60 new models by 2030. Stellantis also said it will work more with outside partners on software and self-driving tech, naming Qualcomm and Wayve.
Qualcomm is starting to talk up autos as more than a side bet. The chipmaker said revenue came in at $10.6 billion in its fiscal second quarter, reported on April 29. GAAP earnings were $6.88 a share, with non-GAAP earnings at $2.65 a share. Non-GAAP earnings exclude some items. Qualcomm said automotive revenue set a quarterly record, and combined auto and IoT sales jumped 20% from the same period last year.
Chief Executive Cristiano Amon is also pushing to boost Qualcomm’s role in data centers. The company said it’s still on schedule to deliver initial shipments of custom silicon to a leading hyperscaler later this year. Qualcomm plans to give investors an update on its data center and artificial-intelligence hardware push at its investor day on June 24.
That move brings Qualcomm closer to markets where Broadcom and Marvell have already seen benefits with custom chips called ASICs—short for application-specific integrated circuits—built for specific computing tasks. Last month Reuters reported that Amon said Qualcomm was developing central processing units, inference accelerators and ASICs for clients.
But the trade isn’t straightforward. Stellantis still doesn’t have final terms for its framework, and Reuters said Stellantis investors were cautious about the company’s big plan, pointing to execution risk. On phones, analysts at J.P. Morgan said the smartphone market was “hardly out of the woods.” Reuters also reported Apple’s push to build its own modem is a continuing risk for Qualcomm’s revenue after their current licensing deal ends in 2027. Reuters
