Qualcomm Q3 Earnings Drop Spurs Shift to Efficient AI Inference Systems
Near-term weakness is concentrated in Qualcomm’s handset business, with fiscal Q3 adjusted earnings falling to $2.21 (about 20% year over year) and Q4 guidance pointing to further softness. The company expects later comparisons to stabilize after Apple’s exit clears by fiscal 2027, while smartphone and licensing operating free cash flow near $10B stabilizes. Upside is framed around AI inference, including AI200/AI250 and a new AI300 roadmap for large language models and multimodal workloads.