Most investors looking for a great investment in artificial intelligence (AI) seem to find Nvidia First, and this is understandable. Not only is the company’s technology at the core of most AI platforms, it has been a hero since the AI wave began in earnest two years ago. In fact, Nvidia’s 400% stock surge since this point in 2022 may have already turned a handful of investors into millionaires.
But Nvidia isn’t the only company benefiting from the continued growth of the AI industry. Now that the dust has settled, it’s clear that the movement isn’t just about computer processors. Walls full of individual processors need to be linked together, and over time, artificial intelligence Solutions need to move beyond data centers to mobile devices—smartphones—for the technology’s potential to be fully realized.
Enters Qualcomm (NASDAQ: QCOM)which could be the next big investment in AI, even if few people are talking about it right now.
Qualcomm you don’t know
Older investors will remember Qualcomm as a superpower during the early days of the mobile era. Before apple The first iPhones appeared in 2007 and before that Samsung With its mobile technology heating up, Qualcomm was not only a supplier of many of the components found in these devices, but also a popular mobile phone brand in its own right.
clearly, some Things have changed since then, but not necessarily for the worse. As other companies have pushed Qualcomm out of the business of branded mobile phones, the company has doubled down on its efforts with other companies. One example: cars — connected cars, specifically. Qualcomm chips power a variety of modern in-vehicle solutions, including driver assistance, mapping, and entertainment.
Smart homes are also getting in on the act. There’s a good chance your remote-controlled thermostat, refrigerator, or air conditioner will use Qualcomm components.
But much of the company’s product base is more practical and necessary than smart home devices and car amenities. Qualcomm’s technology could bridge the gap between 5G mobile connectivity and local Wi-Fi connections, for example, allowing it to serve the service providers you pay for mobile service.
But perhaps the most promising technology in the company’s portfolio is the one that brings it back to the mobile arena: the latest version of the Snapdragon processor, which is capable of handling generative AI tasks right from the device it’s running on.
The Opportunity Snapdragon Has Been Waiting For
You may not realize it, but most consumer-facing AI chatbots like ChatGPT and MicrosoftCopilot’s copilots run their AI work in the cloud. This means that any “thinking” done by the copilots or Chat GPT What you have to do is get it from one of these companies’ data centers and then have it delivered to you in response to your request. This approach works well, although it is not efficient enough to harness the full potential of AI.
But the biggest hurdle? Mobile phones don’t have enough computing power to handle generative AI tasks. But that’s changing. Apple has already confirmed that devices with the powerful A17 processor (and presumably any processors that come after it) will be able to do real AI work from the device itself.
But Apple isn’t the only company capable of offering such solutions, and it’s probably not the best. Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon mobile processor — the latest in a series of chips the company has been making since 2006 — is the first mobile processor built from the ground up to handle generative AI tasks. That means it can not only generate images from text-based descriptions, but also act as a powerful digital assistant.
It can also handle judgment-based tasks like notifying you of important emails and making suggestions about a nearby activity you might be interested in. Both the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold and Flip come with Snapdragon 8 processors on board, and other phones are sure to be on the way.
But Qualcomm is looking beyond smartphones to find ways to use this technology. Laptops and virtual reality headsets powered by AI-capable Snapdragon processors are now readily available. Indeed, Microsoft’s business-focused Surface Pro laptop is powered by an AI-capable Snapdragon X processor. Mordor Intelligence believes the market for AI-powered computing devices is likely to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 26% through 2029.
But can Qualcomm stock make millions?
It’s possible to argue that this is true, although this answer comes with an important footnote. That is, it can take some time for a large investment now to turn into a seven-figure fortune later. Perhaps a decade or more.
According to the latest look, Qualcomm’s top line is expected to improve by just over 9% this year before growing by just over 10% next year. That’s healthy, to be sure. But it’s not spectacular. Even CEO Cristiano Amon’s forecasts seem moderate. As he tepidly explained on the recent Q2 earnings call: “We don’t have any heroic assumptions in our model, but we actually like the direction this is going and that could create an interesting upside if we have an AI-driven upgrade cycle.”
At the same time, the company will compete with the venerable Apple and any other chipmaker that wants to enter the space, and even as AI-enabled smartphones become the norm, the company will remain limited by its established size.
However, what Qualcomm lacks in potential growth speed, it makes up for in future growth longevity. The company has been developing its Snapdragon platform for a long time, long This technology is ready for use by tech companies like Samsung, Microsoft (and others) to start using today. Once a customer starts using such systems, it is often easier to continue using them than to switch to a competing solution.
That’s a long-winded way of saying that if you can stick with this stock for the long term, it has great potential for high returns. It may even have enough upside to help you become a millionaire, provided you have the willpower to leave it alone, even during tough times.
Should you invest $1,000 in Qualcomm now?
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James Bromley The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Apple, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Qualcomm. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: Buy $395 Jan 2026 Microsoft and Sell $405 Jan 2026 Microsoft. The Motley Fool has Disclosure Policy.
Is Qualcomm a stock that makes millions? Originally posted by The Motley Fool
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