Qualcomm Stock Just Hit New Record Highs. Investors Can Thank a ByteDance Deal.

Qualcomm (QCOM) was primarily viewed as a smartphone chip giant, powering millions of Android devices around the world. But the artificial-intelligence (AI) boom is rapidly transforming the company’s growth narrative. Qualcomm stock surged to fresh record highs on Tuesday after reports revealed the chipmaker had secured a major AI infrastructure deal with ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok.

Under the agreement, ByteDance will reportedly buy millions of Qualcomm’s AI-focused ASIC chips for data centers to support its growing AI software operations. The deal marks ByteDance as Qualcomm’s first major customer for its AI ASIC business and represents an important diversification win as Qualcomm expands beyond smartphones after Apple (AAPL) shifted toward in-house modem chips. Qualcomm has also been growing its presence in PCs, laptops, and robotics.