Qualcomm: semiconductors and Made in China 2025
Qualcomm Incorporated cited Made in China 2025, which includes artificial intelligence, semiconductors and quantum computing, as one of its risks.
A significant portion of the company’s revenue comes from Chinese OEMs.
Some of its customers in China have developed, and others may in the future develop, their own IC products and use them in their devices instead of Qualcomm’s IC products, «including due to pressure or policies from the Chinese government (whose Made in China 2025 campaign targets 70% self-sufficiency in semiconductors by 2025).»
Made in China 2025 calls for technological breakthroughs in 10 sectors and sets targets for each sector to increase the production share of Chinese companies, while aiming to transform the Chinese economy from an assembler of goods to an inventor of the products it manufactures.
For example, in semiconductors this includes design, operating systems, production, packaging, testing, equipment and materials.
Qualcomm
The company’s main suppliers of digital, analog/mixed-signal, RF and PM integrated circuits are Global Foundries, Samsung Electronics, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC) and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC).
On the other hand, its main semiconductor assembly and test suppliers are Advanced Semiconductor Engineering, Amkor Technology, Siliconware Precision Industries and STATSChipPAC.
Most of its semiconductor foundry, assembly and test suppliers are located in the Asia-Pacific region.
The global semiconductor industry is concentrated in Europe, Taiwan, Japan, the United States, South Korea and China. Some companies, such as Qualcomm and AMD, focus exclusively on semiconductor design and are known in industry jargon as «fabless» companies.
Qualcomm believes that, due to various factors, such as pressure, encouragement or incentives from, or policies of, the Chinese government (including its Made in China 2025 campaign), there is some risk of losing access to its integrated circuit products as a result of actual, threatened or potential U.S. or Chinese government actions or policies, including trade protection or national security policies, or other reasons.
Some of its Chinese integrated circuit customers have developed, and others may in the future develop, their own integrated circuit products and use them in their devices, or use Qualcomm’s competitors’ integrated circuit products in their devices in lieu of its products.
Qualcomm is a global leader in the development and commercialization of core technologies for the wireless industry, including 3G (third generation), 4G (fourth generation) and 5G (fifth generation) wireless technologies and processor technologies, including high-performance, low-power computing and artificial intelligence technologies in devices.
