The Mobile World Congress 2025 booth of Qualcomm encapsulated the company’s evolving identity. Amidst demos of foldables, PCs, and industrial routers, the conversation with Qualcomm’s India Head Savi Soin, who has led Qualcomm India for the past 18 months, revealed a deliberate shift: Qualcomm is no longer just a chipmaker but a catalyst for tech leapfrogging. This article reconstructs the interview’s key insights, focusing on the technical, strategic, and cultural dimensions of Qualcomm’s roadmap.
On-Device AI: The Core of Qualcomm’s India Strategy
“The future of tech in India isn’t about copying global models—it’s about solving local problems,” Soin began, highlighting Qualcomm’s focus on on-device AI as the cornerstone of its India strategy.
The interview began with a focus on on-device AI as the unifying thread across Qualcomm’s product portfolio. Savi highlighted its relevance for India’s unique challenges: high data costs, intermittent connectivity, and the need for localized solutions. Use cases included smart glasses for rural healthcare diagnostics, industrial routers processing public safety data offline, and the Agentic AI demo smartphone, which showcased real-time language translation and meeting summarization. Critical to this strategy is the reduction of reliance on cloud infrastructure, enabling applications that function seamlessly without stable internet.
A notable anecdote emerged from a visit to an Indian partner developing glasses for frontline healthcare workers. Savi explained that such tools prioritize offline capability to address gaps in infrastructure, a principle Qualcomm terms contextual intelligence. This approach underpins not only consumer devices but also enterprise and industrial solutions, positioning on-device AI as the backbone of Qualcomm’s India-centric innovation.
Dragon Wing: Brand Segmentation for Market Clarity
The introduction of the Dragon Wing brand marked a strategic recalibration. While Snapdragon remains synonymous with premium smartphones and consumer electronics—evident in foldables like the Flip and Fold—Dragon Wing targets industrial IoT, automotive systems, and enterprise solutions. Savi noted that Qualcomm’s expanding portfolio required distinct identities to avoid consumer confusion.
The brand’s name, he explained, symbolizes Qualcomm’s ambition to “widen its wingspan” into sectors beyond consumer tech. Dragon Wing modules now power custom solutions such as smart irrigation systems and EV charging networks in India. This bifurcation ensures Snapdragon retains its cultural touchstone status in India, where consumers explicitly demand the brand, while Dragon Wing caters to industries prioritizing scalability and customization.
5G and Mid-Tier Smartphone Strategy: Aggressive Pricing and Partnerships
Qualcomm’s 4S Gen2 platform emerged as a focal point for mid-tier 5G adoption. Partners like Xiaomi, Poco, and others are leveraging the platform to offer sub-$100 5G smartphones, targeting price-sensitive consumers. Qualcomm emphasized that consumers now demand 5G upgrades, driving OEMs to prioritize affordability. However, challenges persist in rural markets, where data costs remain prohibitive despite network improvements.
The Snapdragon X platform, designed for Gen Z’s mobile-first preferences, aims to address India’s low PC penetration (15%) with sub-$600 laptops from Acer, Asus, and Xiaomi. Compatibility issues with Windows-on-ARM apps have been resolved, but non-connected PC SKUs remain common due to cost constraints. Qualcomm acknowledged that 5G-enabled laptops are gaining traction, particularly among enterprises valuing always-on connectivity.
Automotive and Two-Wheeler Innovation: Scaling Connectivity
Qualcomm’s automotive strategy is anchored in partnerships with Tata, Mahindra, and EV startups. Snapdragon systems now power infotainment and safety features in vehicles, including LLMs with up to 60 billion parameters for voice assistants and predictive analytics. Savi emphasized that automotive development cycles (3–5 years) allow deeper integration of AI and connectivity, contrasting sharply with the rapid refresh cycles of smartphones.
Two-wheelers, a market where India’s ownership ratio exceeds cars by 3:1, are another frontier. Qualcomm’s tech enables connected EVs, aligning with India’s push for sustainable transport. He highlighted that Qualcomm’s R&D hubs in Bangalore and Hyderabad, which are tailoring solutions to India’s infrastructure needs, such as offline-capable healthcare tools and ruggedized devices for extreme environments.
Competitive Dynamics: Modem R&D and the Apple Challenge
Apple’s C1 modem, debuted in the iPhone 16e, sparked a discussion on Qualcomm’s long-term advantages. Savi underscored Qualcomm’s decades of R&D investment in modem technology, citing the X85’s performance in Delhi’s dense traffic—a scenario where connectivity reliability is critical. Qualcomm’s global partnerships and 5G expertise remain unmatched, Soin stated, especially in sectors like automotive and industrial IoT.
XR and Market Education: Bridging Tech and Users
Extended Reality (XR) emerged as a growth area, with Qualcomm collaborating on solutions like Ray-Ban’s AR glasses for healthcare and education. The executive stressed the need to educate Indian consumers on on-device AI’s benefits, particularly in rural areas where data costs and literacy pose barriers. A Mahindra demo using AI for remote education exemplified how localized applications can drive adoption.
Qualcomm also called for industry collaboration to promote XR’s potential, from AR try-ons in retail to safety training in industrial settings. Qualcomm’s role, Savi clarified, is to empower partners with tools that simplify integration, ensuring the technology’s accessibility.
Future Trajectory: Local Engineering and Government Synergy
Qualcomm’s “Snapdragon for India” strategy involves expanding engineering centers in Chennai, Hyderabad, and Delhi to develop region-specific solutions, such as low-power AI chips for rural healthcare and 5G modules optimized for Indian spectrum. Alignment with India’s AI and semiconductor missions underscores the company’s commitment to domestic innovation and manufacturing.
Conclusion: Innovation Meets Localization
Soin underscored Qualcomm’s dual focus: global technological leadership and hyperlocal adaptation. Its India roadmap prioritizes pragmatism over ambition and local needs over one-size-fits-all solutions. By segmenting its brands, advancing offline-first AI, and forging deep cross-industry partnerships, Qualcomm is positioning itself as India’s go-to technology partner. “India isn’t a market—it’s a movement. We’re here to build tech that empowers every citizen, from the remotest village to the busiest city,” Soin said, capturing Qualcomm’s ambition to be more than a chipmaker: a catalyst for India’s tech future.