Top

Three out of Four Smartphones Forecast to Have Dedicated AI Processors by End of 2022

Seoul, Hong Kong, New Delhi, Beijing, London, Buenos Aires, San Diego

April 12th, 2019

Dedicated processors will dramatically expand the use of AI in smartphones with voice assistants being one of the first beneficiaries of ‘on-device’ AI processing

Smartphones have been leveraging the capabilities of artificial intelligence (AI) for some time. However, till now the processing has been done either in the cloud or distributed across the various computer chips in the device such as CPUs, GPUs, and DSPs.

As AI becomes part of the mobile experience, smartphone system-on-chip (SoC) vendors are racing to improve the machine learning capabilities of their chips by integrating dedicated AI processing cores into their designs. The key benefits of this are higher AI processing performance and lower power consumption. However, this must be balanced against the actual need for AI processing, which until recently has been limited.

At present, AI is being used mostly for camera-related applications (facial recognition, image enhancement, and more). However, Counterpoint Research expects to see AI being used extensively for a raft of other applications over the next two years.

“We see voice assistants as one of the first applications to benefit from device-based processing,” said Gareth Owen, Associate Research Director at Counterpoint Research. “Today, most voice processing in smartphones is cloud-based. However, voice assistants will be able to process commands quicker and respond faster with on-device processing. It also resolves privacy concerns,” he added.

Apple and Huawei were the first OEMs to include dedicated AI processors in their SoCs (A11 and Kirin 970 chips respectively) launched in their flagship handsets in September 2017. Two years on, virtually all other SoC vendors are following suit. For example, Qualcomm is offering an AI Tensor Accelerator in the Snapdragon 855’s Hexagon DSP for the first time.

Counterpoint Research forecasts sales of AI smartphones will increase to 1,250 million units in 2022 from 190 million in 2018, representing more than three-quarters of all smartphones shipping in that year.

A key driver behind this forecast is the expected launch of several Android smartphone models using Qualcomm’s 855 SoC in 2019 and beyond. Counterpoint expects that dedicated AI cores will also be included in some mid-range smartphones during 2019 using Taiwanese vendor MediaTek’s new P90 SoC.

Although AI may not be immediately visible to smartphone users today, as the machine learning market evolves and more applications appear, smartphones with dedicated AI hardware will clearly be at an advantage.

“With Qualcomm joining the fray and incorporating hardware-based AI acceleration in its latest Snapdragon SoC for the first time, industry-wide adoption of AI silicon in smartphones is inevitable,” said Peter Richardson, Research Director at Counterpoint Research. “And with Qualcomm keen to extend machine learning capabilities into its lower cost chips, plus the availability of AI SoCs for mid-range phones from other vendors, this trend will quickly extend to mid-range and even low-range smartphones,” he added.

This report is available for purchase on our research portal. It is part of Counterpoint’s Emerging Technology Opportunities service. Please feel free to reach out to us at press(at)counterpointresearch.com for further questions regarding our in-depth latest research, insights or press enquiries.

Background:

Counterpoint Technology Market Research is a global research firm specializing in Technology products in the TMT industry. It services major technology firms and financial firms with a mix of monthly reports, customized projects and detailed analysis of the mobile and technology markets. Its key analysts are experts in the industry with an average tenure of 13 years in the high-tech industry.

Analyst Contact:

Gareth Owen

Associate Director

+44 741 319 0167

gareth@counterpointresearch.com

Gareth has been a technology analyst for over 20 years and has compiled research reports and market share/forecast studies on a range of topics, including wireless technologies, AI & computing, automotive, smartphone hardware, sensors and semiconductors, digital broadcasting and satellite communications.

Term of Use and Privacy Policy

Counterpoint Technology Market Research Limited

Registration

In order to access Counterpoint Technology Market Research Limited (Company or We hereafter) Web sites, you may be asked to complete a registration form. You are required to provide contact information which is used to enhance the user experience and determine whether you are a paid subscriber or not.
Personal Information When you register on we ask you for personal information. We use this information to provide you with the best advice and highest-quality service as well as with offers that we think are relevant to you. We may also contact you regarding a Web site problem or other customer service-related issues. We do not sell, share or rent personal information about you collected on Company Web sites.

How to unsubscribe and Termination

You may request to terminate your account or unsubscribe to any email subscriptions or mailing lists at any time. In accessing and using this Website, User agrees to comply with all applicable laws and agrees not to take any action that would compromise the security or viability of this Website. The Company may terminate User’s access to this Website at any time for any reason. The terms hereunder regarding Accuracy of Information and Third Party Rights shall survive termination.

Website Content and Copyright

This Website is the property of Counterpoint and is protected by international copyright law and conventions. We grant users the right to access and use the Website, so long as such use is for internal information purposes, and User does not alter, copy, disseminate, redistribute or republish any content or feature of this Website. User acknowledges that access to and use of this Website is subject to these TERMS OF USE and any expanded access or use must be approved in writing by the Company.
– Passwords are for user’s individual use
– Passwords may not be shared with others
– Users may not store documents in shared folders.
– Users may not redistribute documents to non-users unless otherwise stated in their contract terms.

Changes or Updates to the Website

The Company reserves the right to change, update or discontinue any aspect of this Website at any time without notice. Your continued use of the Website after any such change constitutes your agreement to these TERMS OF USE, as modified.
Accuracy of Information: While the information contained on this Website has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable, We disclaims all warranties as to the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of such information. User assumes sole responsibility for the use it makes of this Website to achieve his/her intended results.

Third Party Links: This Website may contain links to other third party websites, which are provided as additional resources for the convenience of Users. We do not endorse, sponsor or accept any responsibility for these third party websites, User agrees to direct any concerns relating to these third party websites to the relevant website administrator.

Cookies and Tracking

We may monitor how you use our Web sites. It is used solely for purposes of enabling us to provide you with a personalized Web site experience.
This data may also be used in the aggregate, to identify appropriate product offerings and subscription plans.
Cookies may be set in order to identify you and determine your access privileges. Cookies are simply identifiers. You have the ability to delete cookie files from your hard disk drive.