Qualcomm Bets on 40+ AI Wearables as Smartphone Replacements
Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon says the company is developing over 40 AI wearable designs — jewelry, camera earbuds, pins, and watches — betting the next computing platform isn't a phone.
In Brief
- Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon says the company is developing over 40 AI wearable designs — jewelry, camera earbuds, pins, and watches — betting the next computing platform isn’t a phone.
- The shift: AI agents become the primary interface, apps turn into background services. Amon calls 2026 “the year of agents” and predicts every OS vendor will build an agent orchestrator within months.
- Qualcomm’s silicon play: Snapdragon Reality Elite for mixed-reality glasses (60% GPU, 160% NPU gains) and START, a white-label toolkit with three reference designs for smart glasses makers like Inspecs and O’Neill.
Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon said Tuesday the chipmaker is working on more than 40 AI wearable devices — jewelry, camera earbuds, pins, and watches — betting the next computing platform isn’t a phone.
To power that vision, Qualcomm announced two offerings: Snapdragon Reality Elite for mixed-reality glasses, and START, a hardware-and-software stack for AI devices starting with smart glasses.
The agent becomes the interface
“Agents are going to be the new app,” Amon told CNBC‘s The Tech Download podcast. Apps aren’t dead, but they’ll change — becoming services agents call on. Amon called 2026 “the year of agents” and predicted every OS vendor will build an agent orchestrator within months.
The common thread across Qualcomm’s 40-plus designs is something you wear that sees and hears the world, feeding an agent context. The smartphone stays, but as one planet orbiting the agent. He’s most bullish on smart glasses: shipments run to “multiple tens of millions” annually, and within “a couple of years” could reach “hundreds of millions” — rivaling ~1.2 billion smartphones yearly, per The Next Web.
Silicon for the post-phone era
Snapdragon Reality Elite delivers up to 60% better GPU, 30% better CPU, and 160% better NPU versus the prior XR platform. Qualcomm says it runs a 3B-parameter model at 45 tokens per second. The platform supports 4.4K per-eye resolution at 90 fps, powering both standalone video-see-through headsets and lightweight tethered glasses. Early adopters include XREAL’s Project Aura and a Play for Dream device, per TechCrunch.
START combines an AR chip, software platform, and white-label program with three reference designs: audio-plus-camera like Meta’s Ray-Ban glasses, monocular display, and binocular display. Inspecs and O’Neill (owned by TitanFlex) are first partners, per Benzinga.
Whether agents dethrone the app is unproven. But the direction — from screens you tap to assistants you talk to — is one the industry now seems to be betting on.
Read more: Qualcomm Jumps 13% on OpenAI Smartphone Partnership | Apple Tests 4 Smart Glass Designs
FAQ
How many AI wearable devices is Qualcomm developing?
Over 40 designs, including jewelry, camera-equipped earbuds, pins, pendants, and watches.
What is Snapdragon Reality Elite?
A platform for mixed-reality glasses with up to 60% GPU, 30% CPU, and 160% NPU gains over the prior XR platform, supporting 4.4K per-eye resolution at 90 fps.
What is the START toolkit?
A white-label program combining an AR chip, software platform, and three reference designs for smart glasses makers to bring products to market faster.
When will smart glasses rival smartphone shipment volumes?
Amon predicts within “a couple of years” smart glasses could reach “hundreds of millions” annually, approaching ~1.2 billion smartphones shipped yearly.
Is Qualcomm acquiring Tenstorrent?
The Information reported talks for an $8–10 billion deal, but negotiations are ongoing and could change or collapse.
