Qualcomm Inc. (NASDAQ:QCOM) CEO Cristiano Amon said the company is developing more than 40 new AI-powered devices, betting that consumers will increasingly adopt smaller, personalized AI hardware.

In an interview on CNBC's "The Tech Download" podcast on Monday, Amon discussed the changing role of smartphones and apps, and the potential of smart glasses as the next big consumer device.

Amon said future AI devices could include smart jewelry, camera-equipped earbuds, pins, and watches that act as personal AI agents, understanding user intent and performing tasks without relying on traditional apps.

"Right now, we have over 40 designs of those devices, and I'm telling you, the types of form factors are very, very broad," Amon said.

The CEO further said AI agents could transform how people use apps by handling tasks directly without requiring users to navigate an app. While apps will continue to exist, Amon believes they will evolve, with AI agents increasingly becoming the primary interface for completing tasks.

Apps are "not dead," Amon said, "but apps are going to change."

AI Push Drives Qualcomm Strategy

Emphasizing the need for more powerful and energy-efficient chips for these smaller form factor devices, Amon revealed that Qualcomm’s entire roadmap is currently undergoing an upgrade to prepare for this future.

Qualcomm and Tenstorrent did not immediately respond to Benzinga's requests for comment. 

In May, Qualcomm reportedly reached a deal to supply TikTok parent ByteDance with application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) for AI data centers.

QCOM Price Action: The stock gained 4.07% in Tuesday’s pre-market trading session. On a year-to-date basis, it surged 27.65%, as per data from Benzinga Pro.

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

Image via Shutterstock