Qualcomm Launches Snapdragon START to Enable the Next Phase of Personal AI Devices

Qualcomm Launches Snapdragon START to Enable the Next Phase of Personal AI Devices

Highlights:

• Snapdragon START combines modules with an AI-agnostic full software stack and a network of manufacturing partners to let brands, enterprise focused organizations and emerging innovators focus on design and experience.
• The program enables brands across consumer and enterprise to design and scale personal AI devices, starting with smart glasses, with support for additional form factors planned later this year.
• Global eyewear company, Inspecs is the first to work with Qualcomm Technologies to bring smart glasses to market across multiple eyewear brands.

Qualcomm Technologies Inc., today announced at Augmented World Expo, the Snapdragon® Scalable Turnkey AI-Ready Toolkit (START) a program designed to help brands bring their own personal AI devices to market faster and with greater flexibility, starting with smart glasses.

At the core of Snapdragon START are hardware modules powered by Snapdragon® platforms, combining advanced compute, connectivity, and AI into an industry-leading compact, wearable footprint designed to support a broader range of designs. The modules are paired with a security-focused, AI-agnostic software stack that connects the device with companion smartphone apps and cloud services to support hybrid AI experiences, while democratizing access to and orchestration of leading AI models to give brands choice and flexibility. Snapdragon START enables organizations to focus on developing new unique user experiences, as well as design and go-to-market strategy for faster deployment, bringing more Personal AI devices, such as smart glasses, into the hands of consumers.

"AI is becoming more personal, it is designed to work with you, your context, and what you're doing in the moment," said Ziad Asghar, Senior Vice President and General Manager of XR, Wearables and Personal AI at Qualcomm Technologies. "Personal AI devices, including smart glasses, help bring agentic AI to life, by seeing what you see and hearing what you hear. Snapdragon START establishes the foundation that makes it easier for brands and organizations to bring these devices to market, expanding access to agentic capabilities to more consumers."

Inspecs, the global eyewear company behind licensed brands such as Barbour, CAT, Superdry and O'Neill and the owner of premium eyewear brand TitanFlex, is the first to exclusively collaborate with Qualcomm Technologies under the Snapdragon START program, marking a significant step forward in the evolution of smart eyewear.

"Our customers already trust Inspecs for great design, comfort, and quality," said founder and executive chairman Robin Totterman, Inspecs. "Partnering with Qualcomm Technologies allows us to redefine what eyewear can be. Together, we are bringing smart glasses to market that integrate seamlessly into everyday life, combining timeless design with powerful, intuitive technology. This is more than product innovation, it's a shared conviction. We believe smart eyewear will fundamentally reshape how people interact with technology. Backed by one of the world's most advanced technology companies, Inspecs is uniquely positioned to lead that transformation, placing intelligent, connected experiences directly in front of the human eye."

Snapdragon START is supported by an expanding ecosystem of technology and manufacturing partners, including Applied Materials, through their technology and manufacturing ecosystem, as well as Avegant, Jorjin, Pegatron, and Thundercomm.

"Each customer has unique needs to integrate the technologies that create great smart glasses, which deliver compelling user experiences. These glasses require advanced visual systems and a seamless path to production," said Paul Meissner, Vice President and General Manager of Applied Materials' Photonics Platforms Business. "We're excited to collaborate with Qualcomm Technologies and be part of Snapdragon START, combining our engineering excellence in design with manufacturing scale to support brands building AI-powered, next-generation smart glasses."

"Snapdragon START lowers the barrier for brands to bring smart glasses to market at scale," said Ali Mesri, Sr. Vice President, North America, Thundercomm. "By combining production ready designs with Qualcomm Technologies' power-efficient AI platforms, we're enabling a new generation of wearable products designed for real-world use."

With Snapdragon START, Qualcomm Technologies is enabling brands to bring new Personal AI devices to market at scale. For more information, visit the Snapdragon START webpage.

About Qualcomm

Qualcomm is a global computing leader at the center of the AI era, enabling intelligence to scale from the most personal devices to large-scale infrastructure. Building on more than four decades of innovation, we develop platforms and solutions that bring together advanced AI, high-performance, low power computing and industry-leading connectivity-powering products and services used around the world. At Qualcomm, we are engineering human progress.

Qualcomm Incorporated includes our licensing business, QTL, and the vast majority of our patent portfolio. Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., a subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated, operates, along with its subsidiaries, substantially all of our engineering and research and development functions and substantially all of our products and services businesses, including our QCT semiconductor business. Snapdragon and Qualcomm branded products are products of Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and/or its subsidiaries. Qualcomm patents are licensed by Qualcomm Incorporated. Qualcomm, Snapdragon, Qualcomm Dragonwing and Qualcomm Dragonfly are trademarks or registered trademarks of Qualcomm Incorporated.

Snapdragon and Qualcomm branded products are products of Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and/or its subsidiaries.

Qualcomm, Qualcomm Dragonwing and Snapdragon are trademarks or registered trademarks of Qualcomm Incorporated.