Can Siri save the C1 modem from Qualcomm AI?
The iPhone 16e (left) carries the first ever Apple 5G modem, the C1
Qualcomm is relying on artificial intelligence to give its modems an edge now that it faces a well-resourced modem competitor as Apple’s C1 modem enters the fray. This may yet prove to be a weak position, given that Apple owns the hardware, software and operating systems inside its systems – and that its C1 modem also uses AI to optimize connections.
Speaking to CNBC during the week, Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon discussed his company’s all-new X85 modem, which the company claims is, “Designed for the next generation of connected and AI-enabled applications.” That design leans heavily into artificial intelligence, Amon admitted.
“It’s the first modem that has so much AI, it actually increases the range of performance of the modem so the modem can deal with weaker signals,” he said.
He argues that this component will set itself apart from what Apple delivers.
But, what if he is wrong?
After all, not only will Apple’s modem be better integrated inside Apple hardware, but that integration means the Apple modem can draw on the computational intelligence of the device, rather than relying on its own built in AI.
In contrast, Qualcomm’s offering will inevitably be less able to access AI support from the chips on the host machines it appears on (as it doesn’t make the host processors), which presumably means it will be reliant on its own AI – which is unlikely to be as powerful as the host chip.
Within that, I can see trade-offs in terms of relay speed, component interconnect, and that Qualcomm’s AI is likely to have been trained on a huge stack of incredibly relevant teal-world training data – so it may yet be better at modeming.
However, it is also possible Apple already has useful network data in its own right, collected from iPhone users in normal use in the form of crash and network reports. If it does, then that means it has real world performance data gathered across millions of users across almost two decades with which to train its own AI.
Which may even the game.
Comparing Apple’s with…
Amon believes Qualcomm’s AI-augmented modems will, “set a huge delta between the performance of premium Android devices, and iOS devices, when you compare what Qualcomm can do versus what Apple is doing.”
He’s got good reasons to be cheerful, given that AI needs modems like humans need hearts – that networked data is the wind under AI’s wings, without it, AI becomes AD (Artificial Dumb).
But while he seems certain Qualcomm will offer the best available modem, and while Apple has been working on its own for many years before getting there with the C1, I think the real test of modems will come when Apple decides to put it inside its own pro products in or around 2027.
One year before the first pre-commercial 6G trials are expected to begin. I’ve a feeling all those dates will prove to be more connected than that appear to be.
Today will look different tomorrow
“We build a platform for generations,” said Apple Senior Vice President of Hardware Technologies Johny Srouji. “C1 is the start, and we’re going to keep improving that technology each generation, so that it becomes a platform for us that will be used to truly differentiate this technology for our products.”
Watch this space.
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I assume you mean the SoC (System on a chip) by this comment? “In contrast, Qualcomm’s offering will inevitably be less able to access AI support from the chips on the host machines it appears on (as it doesn’t make the host processors), which presumably means it will be reliant on its own AI – which is unlikely to be as powerful as the host chip.”
You do realize that Qualcomm’s modem is indeed integrated into their SoC’s and has been for multiple generations of processors. They also sold a stand-alone/discrete modem to Apple given apple makes their own processor and needed a separate modem. Phones like the entire Samsung S25 line (any many others) are using these and have actual onboard AI that works today (unlike Apple’s who announced to great fanfare and then quietly continues to push out the dates). So, Qualcomm has access to the same data you seem assume that only Apple will have.
Most users likely won’t notice the inferior performance of their modems, the sub-par download speeds, dropped connections, etc. In the long run, it’s probably a good thing for Qualcomm too as they’ll still get a nice royalty stream (As Apple will still have to pay for the use of Qualcomm’s patented technology),and not have to spend money on a line of modems for one customer. RF is hard and it’s taken Apple 5 years and several billion dollars to deliver a modem several generations behind what is commercially available to others. At least their premium phones still have a modem that is 2-3 generations behind.
RF is Hard