Qualcomm, USI and ASUS collaborate to foster growth of mobile and semiconductor industry in Brazil

In São Paulo today Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., a subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated, Universal Scientific Industrial (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. (USI) and ASUS, highlighted their collaboration to grow the mobile and semiconductor industry in Brazil by announcing the commercial launch of the ASUS Zenfone Max Shot and Zenfone Max Plus (M2), the world’s first smartphones with the Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ System in Package (S i P) 1, a cellular SiP technology. The first commercial multi-chip semiconductor designed in Brazil, Snapdragon SiP is engineered to help to enable design efficiencies, reduce development costs and accelerate time to commercialization for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), leading to robust and sleek designs to enrich the consumer experience.

Snapdragon SiP is the result of an ongoing collaboration between Qualcomm Technologies, USI and Brazil federal government, who have been working together to lay the foundation and foster the growth of the semiconductor industry in Brazil. Building on the heritage of cutting-edge solutions from Qualcomm Technologies, Snapdragon SiP integrates many components normally part of the Company’s Snapdragon Mobile Platforms, including the application processor, power management, RF front end, and audio codec, into a single semiconductor system in package, leading to more space for additional components such as cameras or battery, as well as thinner form factors. These products are designed to help dramatically simplify the device engineering and manufacturing processes and provide cost and development time savings to OEMs and IoT device manufacturers.

“Qualcomm Technologies platforms and solutions continue to support and accelerate the mobile industry and beyond,” said Cristiano Amon, president, Qualcomm Incorporated. “Snapdragon SiP is designed to offer the connectivity, security and accessibility that our customers need to create innovative products and superior user experiences, and I am proud to see the first Snapdragon SiP devices become available in the country of Brazil from ASUS.”

“We are excited to collaborate with Qualcomm, USI and Brazil federal government to launch the ZenFone Max Shot and ZenFone Max Plus (M2) as the world’s first smartphones with Snapdragon SiP that are making a debut in Brazil. At ASUS, user experience is always our first priority. We want to make sure that we provide the best products and most unique experiences to meet the specific demands of consumers in Brazil, ” says S.Y Hsu, ASUS co-CEO .

“This initiative is a promising way to boost scientific innovation in the country, considering that the entire value chain starts with research and development of new technologies, making it possible to develop smartphones and IoT products in Brazil, products that can be used in many different verticals. The smartphone launched today reflects the vocation of the country to foster technological development that can be truly applied with the objective of making lives better,” says the Minister of Science, Technology, Innovations and Communications, Marcos Pontes.

Factory venue announcement

During the launch event of the new mobile devices, the joint venture Semicondutores Avançados do Brasil S. A., formed by Qualcomm Technologies and USI, announced that Jaguariúna in the State of Sao Paulo, is the city where the Snapdragon SiP factory is expected to be built.  This production is expected to begin in 2020 and should employ between 800 and 1,000 people with an estimated investment of $ 200 million over five-years.

"The Snapdragon SiP is an important product to include Brazil into the global semiconductor value chain and, building on the formation of the joint venture between Qualcomm Technologies and USI, we will work together to enable the country to add qualified jobs and acquire development expertise to its professional workforce through the planned factory in Jaguariúna. In addition to smartphones, Snapdragon SiP is designed to power IoT devices as well, contributing to the development of the Internet of Things business in the country," said Rafael Steinhauser, senior vice president, Qualcomm Servicos de Telecomunicacoes Ltda., and president, Qualcomm Latin America.

"As Brazil demonstrates significant growth potential for integrated semiconductor SIPs, USI believes that our experience in miniaturization technology will be very important to make this project a success," said Mr. CY Wei, president, USI. “Following the announcement of our joint venture with Qualcomm Technologies earlier last year, we are excited to be part of the value chain in the development and manufacturing of this SIP. This commercial launch lays the foundation for the products that will be manufactured by the joint venture in the continuing collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies to install a semiconductor SIP factory in Jaguariúna and create highly qualified jobs in Brazil . " he added.

The governor João Doria emphasizes the importance of the project to the State of São Paulo. "It is quite significant to be able to host in the state a factory that will produce cutting-edge technology. This is a clear demonstration that the government is in tune with global trends and working to insert Brazil into the high-density semiconductor chain. Like any major enterprise, it will be a pole of employment and income generation, but in this case, we are talking about the formation of highly specialized labor," he says. "It is an honor to have at our side a company that bets on innovation, because this collaboration can boost the economic development of the country," he adds.