Qualcomm(US:QCOM) 量子位·2025-10-28 14:24Core Viewpoint - Qualcomm has officially entered the data center market with the launch of two new AI chips, AI200 and AI250, aiming to compete with Nvidia and AMD in the AI accelerator space [2][6][7]. Group 1: Product Launch and Features - Qualcomm's AI200 and AI250 are designed as rack-level inference accelerators and systems, focusing on the inference phase of AI models, with the lowest total cost of ownership (TCO), higher energy efficiency, and enhanced memory processing capabilities [8][11]. - The AI200 is expected to be commercially available by 2026 and can be sold as a standalone chip or as part of a complete rack server system [11]. - The AI250, planned for release in 2027, features a new near-memory computing architecture that claims to provide over 10 times effective memory bandwidth improvement while significantly reducing power consumption [13]. - Both products support enterprise-level features such as direct liquid cooling, PCIe and Ethernet expansion, and confidential computing, targeting high-density rack scenarios [13]. Group 2: Market Context and Competitive Landscape - Qualcomm's entry into the data center market comes after a six-year gap since its last data center product, the AI100, which was primarily aimed at edge and lightweight inference [5][15]. - The global data center investment is projected to reach $6.7 trillion by 2030, indicating a lucrative market opportunity [20]. - Currently, Nvidia dominates the market with over 90% share, while AMD holds a smaller portion, leaving room for competitors like Qualcomm to capture market share [21]. Group 3: Strategic Positioning and Future Plans - Qualcomm has a history of technology accumulation in mobile chips, which has been leveraged in the development of the AI200 and AI250, utilizing advancements in its Hexagon neural processing unit (NPU) [17]. - The company plans to advance its data center product roadmap at a pace of one generation per year, continuously improving AI inference performance, energy efficiency, and overall TCO competitiveness [14]. - Qualcomm has already secured an order from Saudi AI startup Humain for deploying rack-level computing systems based on AI200/AI250, with a total power of up to 200 megawatts starting in 2026 [23].