Qualcomm (QCOM) Deutsche Bank 2026 Technology Conference summary

Executive background and business evolution

• EVP of Tech Planning oversees technology roadmap from IoT to data center, with recent focus on restarting and establishing a dedicated data center business unit.

• Company has undergone three major strategic shifts over 29 years, with increasing emphasis on product planning and business integration.

High Bandwidth Compute (HBC) technology strategy

• HBC addresses the memory wall by co-designing compute and memory, offering a unique alternative to HBM with significantly higher bandwidth per watt.

• First generation HBC products are set for commercial launch in 2027, with Gen 2 following in 2028, both showing strong interest from memory vendors and hyperscalers.

• HBC delivers up to 6x tokens per second per watt compared to HBM and outperforms SRAM in total cost of ownership.

• Silicon validation is progressing well, with engineering and commercial samples on track and broad engagement from memory partners.

• HBC is positioned as a flexible solution for hyperscalers, supporting standalone or integrated deployments with CPUs and AI accelerators.

Market engagement and commercialization

• Hyperscalers are actively evaluating HBC for both decode and prefill stages, with mix-and-match options for custom silicon solutions.

• Memory vendors are opening parallel tracks for HBC alongside HBM, viewing HBC as the only near-term solution for significant performance gains.

• HBC technology is being adapted for edge devices, including smartphones, tablets, PCs, XR, and automotive, with commercial discussions underway.

• Gen 1 will see early adopters, while Gen 2 is expected to drive broader volume adoption as customer interest grows.