# Episode 27: Industry Cyclicality On Display in Big Semi Co. Earnings

- Show: [The Circuit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-circuit)
- Published: 2023-08-03
- Length: 39m
- Episode: 29
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-circuit/2023-08-03-episode-27-industry-cyclicality-on-display-in-big-semi-co-earnings
- Listen: https://share.transistor.fm/s/b84f9df4

## Summary

Ben Bajarin and Jay Goldberg analyze the recent earnings of Intel, AMD, and Qualcomm, highlighting a broad semiconductor downturn driven by cyclical weakness in PCs and smartphones, while noting that AI spending is currently concentrated almost exclusively in NVIDIA's data center business. They discuss how the smartphone market has shrunk due to extended upgrade cycles and how the PC market remains depressed despite inventory clearance, with value increasingly accruing to Apple. The hosts debate whether on-device AI capabilities, specifically NPUs in chips from Qualcomm and AMD, will create compelling consumer use cases that kickstart a new hardware refresh cycle in 2024, or if the industry will remain in a holding pattern until software use cases mature.

## Chapters

- [0:15](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-circuit/2023-08-03-episode-27-industry-cyclicality-on-display-in-big-semi-co-earnings#t=15) Introduction: Semiconductor Cyclicality and Recent Earnings
- [4:52](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-circuit/2023-08-03-episode-27-industry-cyclicality-on-display-in-big-semi-co-earnings#t=292) Data Center Spending and the NVIDIA Dominance
- [9:14](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-circuit/2023-08-03-episode-27-industry-cyclicality-on-display-in-big-semi-co-earnings#t=554) Smartphone Market Softness and China's Slow Recovery
- [15:56](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-circuit/2023-08-03-episode-27-industry-cyclicality-on-display-in-big-semi-co-earnings#t=956) PC Market Depression and Apple's Growing Share
- [19:20](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-circuit/2023-08-03-episode-27-industry-cyclicality-on-display-in-big-semi-co-earnings#t=1160) AI Hardware Mix: GPUs, Memory, and Networking
- [25:51](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-circuit/2023-08-03-episode-27-industry-cyclicality-on-display-in-big-semi-co-earnings#t=1551) On-Device AI: Qualcomm, AMD, and the NPU Opportunity
- [34:30](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-circuit/2023-08-03-episode-27-industry-cyclicality-on-display-in-big-semi-co-earnings#t=2070) Enterprise AI and the Potential for On-Prem Reversal

## Topics

- [Chips, FPGAs & semiconductors](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/chips-and-fpgas)
- [Industrial & consumer product design](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/industrial-design)
- [Scaling production](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/scaling-production)
- [Policy, trade & tariffs](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/policy-trade-and-tariffs)

## Most relevant to

large enterprises

## Mentioned

- Intel (company)
- AMD (company)
- Qualcomm (company)
- NVIDIA (company)
- Apple (company)
- Media Tek (company)
- Microsoft (company)
- Amazon (company)
- Snapdragon (product)
- H100 (product)
- MI300 (product)
- Grace Hopper (product)
- Mellanox (product)
- M Series (product)
- PCX (product)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Intel CPU |5G Fixed Wireless | AI Silicon Race | SMIC Rift](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ee-times-current/2019-03-29-intel-cpu-5g-fixed-wireless-ai-silicon-race-smic-rift) (EE Times Current)
- [Whither Semiconductors? The Wheels on the Bus Go ‘Round and ‘Round](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ee-times-current/2021-07-16-whither-semiconductors-the-wheels-on-the-bus-go-round-and-round) (EE Times Current)
- [Interview: AMD CTO Papermaster | Interview: Imagination CEO Black | Where to Invest in 2020](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ee-times-current/2020-01-24-interview-amd-cto-papermaster-interview-imagination-ceo-black-where-to-invest-in) (EE Times Current)
- [China’s $28B Big Fund | The Cockiest Startup | Sony’s Ambitions](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ee-times-current/2019-11-22-chinas-28b-big-fund-the-cockiest-startup-sonys-ambitions) (EE Times Current)
- [Qualcomm’s AI Chip | V2X Debate | Countdown to China’s IC Self-Sufficiency](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ee-times-current/2019-04-12-qualcomms-ai-chip-v2x-debate-countdown-to-chinas-ic-self-sufficiency) (EE Times Current)

## Citing this page

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