After Google throws Qualcomm chips on its Pixel phones, Android boss Hiroshi Lockheimer brings a message of peace to Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Summit.”We couldn’t do it on our own. We needed partners like you.”
Google’s Android boss Hiroshi Lockheimer appeared in person at Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Summit to reiterate the partnership between the two companies shortly after Google ditched Qualcomm for its own Tensor chipset in its flagship Pixel phones. Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon has attempted to make Qualcomm a synonym for Android on stage. But while Android has always run on more processors than Qualcomm, the mood changes when developing a product that directly competes with its partners.
Lockheimer chatted with Amon on stage, but who said what to look for. Amon spoke about Qualcomm as the leader in premium smartphones. Lockheimer has tried to take a broader approach, perhaps to avoid criticizing Tensor or Google’s tensor strategy.
“When we started working on it together, it was really about the phone. And now it’s the phone and all these other devices around it, and they’re also the premium experience: the wearable device, sound device, tablet, all that. Improving all of those things is part of the experience, and you do it, ”Lockheimer told Amon.
Ultimately, Lockheimer wanted to assert that Google is always “open” by providing an open platform in which not all experiences are personal experiences. Some saw the move to the tensioner with the Pixel 6 as a possible move to a more Apple model.
“Good ideas are everywhere… and we want to be able to capture the ones we don’t think about… ourselves, not all of them will come from Google, not even Qualcomm,” Lockheimer said. “We have to work together.”
The partnership between Qualcomm and Google is strong, Lockheimer said. “I think it’s great … I think it’s wonderful.”
