Qualcomm starts the year off strong with more than $10 billion in revenue

Qualcomm continues to defy odds despite the chip shortage.

What you need to know

• Qualcomm announces its first-quarter financial earnings.
• The company exceeded expectations with $10.7 billion in revenue.
• The growth was driven primarily by Android handsets, contributing half of its revenue.

Qualcomm released its financial earnings for its fiscal first quarter of 2022, which ended in December. Qualcomm's revenue continues to grow as it reaches more than $10 billion in revenue, a figure it previously expected to break during the quarter.

Qualcomm's QCT business was the main driver behind its strong quarter, as it's the division responsible for its chipsets that go into the best Android phones. QCT brought in more than $8 billion in revenue, nearly $6 billion of which was attributed to a 42% growth in handsets year-over-year.

This also represented a notable growth from the previous quarter, which can likely be attributed to holiday spending as well as growing demand for 5G smartphones.

"Our record quarterly results reflect the strong demand for our products and technologies, with QCT revenues exceeding those of any fabless semiconductor company," Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon said in a statemement.

"We are at the beginning of one of the largest opportunities in our history, with our addressable market expanding by more than seven times to approximately $700 billion in the next decade. Our one technology roadmap positions us as the partner of choice for both mobile and the connected intelligent edge."

It's notable that Qualcomm's revenue continues to rise despite the ongoing global chip shortage that has affected the smartphone, auto, gaming, and many other industries. A recent report highlights the reason as a lack of wafer production capacity, among other factors. However, Qualcomm has previously boasted strategic partnerships with companies like Intel that have helped and will help it maneuver the shortage, and Amon reiterated his positive outlook on Qualcomm's position during Wednesday's earnings call.

"Despite ongoing challenges across the global supply chain, our multi-sourcing and capacity expansion initiatives will provide incremental improvements to our supply throughout the year."