Item 1. Business

We incorporated in California in 1985 and reincorporated in Delaware in 1991. We operate and report using a 52-53 week fiscal year ending on the last Sunday in September. Our 52-week fiscal years consist of four equal fiscal quarters of 13 weeks each, and our 53-week fiscal years consist of three 13-week fiscal quarters and one 14-week fiscal quarter. The financial results for our 53-week fiscal years and our 14-week fiscal quarters will not be exactly comparable to our 52-week fiscal years and our 13-week fiscal quarters. The fiscal years ended September 29, 2019 and September 24, 2017 included 52 weeks. The fiscal year ended September 30, 2018 included 53 weeks.

Overview

We are a global leader in the development and commercialization of foundational technologies for the wireless industry. Our technologies and products are used in mobile devices and other wireless products, including network equipment, broadband gateway equipment, consumer electronic devices and other connected devices. Our inventions have helped power the growth in smartphones, which have connected billions of people. We are a pioneer in 3G (third generation) and 4G (fourth generation) wireless technologies and are a leader in 5G (fifth generation) wireless technologies to empower a new era of intelligent, connected devices. Our technologies and products are also used in industry segments and applications beyond mobile, including automotive, computing, IoT (Internet of Things) and networking, allowing devices and objects to connect and communicate with each other in new ways. We derive revenues principally from sales of integrated circuit products and licensing our intellectual property, including patents and other rights.

The foundational technologies we invent help power the modern mobile experience, impacting how the world connects, computes and communicates. We share these inventions broadly through our licensing program, enabling wide ecosystem access to technologies at the core of mobile innovation, and through the sale of our wireless integrated circuit platforms (also known as chips or chipsets) and other products, which accelerates consumer adoption of experiences empowered by these inventions. As a company, we collaborate across the ecosystem, including manufacturers, operators, developers, governments and industry standards organizations, to enable a global environment to drive continued progress and growth.

We have a long history of driving innovation. We have played and continue to play a leading role in developing system level inventions that serve as the foundation for 3G, 4G and 5G wireless technologies. This includes the CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) and OFDMA (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access) families of technologies, with the latter encompassing LTE (Long Term Evolution), which, along with TDMA (Time Division Multiple Access), are the primary digital technologies currently used to transmit a wireless device user’s voice or data over radio waves using a public cellular wireless network.

We own significant intellectual property, including patents, patent applications and trade secrets, applicable to products that implement any version of CDMA and OFDMA. Companies in the mobile industry generally recognize that any company

seeking to develop, manufacture and/or sell devices or infrastructure equipment that use CDMA-based and/or OFDMA-based technologies will require a license or other rights to use our patents.

We also develop and commercialize numerous other key technologies used in mobile and other wireless devices that help drive end-user demand, and we own substantial intellectual property related to these technologies. Some of these inventions are contributed to and commercialized as industry standards, such as certain video and audio codecs, Wi-Fi, GPS (global positioning system) and Bluetooth. Other technologies that we have developed and that are widely used by wireless devices are not related to any industry standards, such as operating systems, user interfaces, graphics and camera processing functionality, RF (radio frequency), RF front-end (RFFE) and antenna designs and application processor architectures. Our patents cover a wide range of technologies across the entire wireless system (including wireless devices and network infrastructure equipment), not just the portion of such patented technologies incorporated into chipsets.

We are organized on the basis of products and services and have three reportable segments. We conduct business primarily through our QCT (Qualcomm CDMA Technologies) semiconductor business and our QTL (Qualcomm Technology Licensing) licensing business. QCT develops and supplies integrated circuits and system software based on CDMA, OFDMA and other technologies for use in mobile devices, wireless networks, broadband gateway equipment, consumer electronic devices, devices used in IoT and automotive telematics and infotainment systems. QTL grants licenses to use portions of our intellectual property portfolio, which includes certain patent rights essential to and/or useful in the manufacture and sale of certain wireless products. Our QSI (Qualcomm Strategic Initiatives) reportable segment makes strategic investments. We also have nonreportable segments, including Qualcomm Government Technologies or QGOV (formerly Qualcomm Cyber Security Solutions), as well as other wireless technology and service initiatives.

Industry Trends

As the largest technology platform in the world, mobile has transformed the way we connect, compute and communicate. The scale and pace of innovation in the mobile industry, especially around connectivity and computing capabilities, is also impacting industries beyond wireless, empowering new services, new business models and new experiences. Our inventions and licensing program have been integral to, and provided foundational technologies for, the evolution of the mobile industry.

Advancing connectivity. 3G/4G multimode mobile broadband technology has been a key innovation of mobile, providing users with fast, reliable, always-on connectivity. As of September 30, 2019, there were approximately 6.0 billion 3G/4G connections globally (CDMA-based, OFDMA-based and CDMA/OFDMA multimode) representing 76% of total mobile connections (GSMA Intelligence, November 2019). By 2023, global 3G/4G connections are projected to reach 7.0 billion, with approximately 88% of these connections coming from emerging regions and China (GSMA Intelligence, November 2019).

3G/4G multimode mobile broadband continues to be an important platform for extending the reach and potential of the Internet. This is amplified in emerging regions and China, where, as of September 30, 2019, 3G/4G mobile broadband connections are estimated to be approximately seven times the number of fixed Internet household connections (GSMA Intelligence November 2019 and PT June 2019). In China, 3G/4G multimode services have experienced strong adoption since being launched in 2013, with more than 1.4 billion connections estimated as of September 30, 2019 (GSMA Intelligence, November 2019). In India, mobile operators continue to expand their 3G/4G multimode services, providing consumers with the benefits of advanced mobile broadband connectivity while creating new opportunities for device manufacturers and other members of the mobile ecosystem. 3G/4G mobile broadband may be the first and, in many cases, the only way that people in these regions access the Internet. The transition of wireless networks and devices to 3G/4G has not only been driven by the number of affordable handsets available in emerging regions and China, but also by the variety of flexible and affordable data plans being offered by mobile operators.

With the first 5G global specifications defined in 2018 by 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project), an industry standards development organization, initial commercial 5G network deployments and device launches, which focus on enhanced mobile broadband services, began in 2019 and will continue into 2020 and beyond. 5G is designed to enhance mobile broadband services, including ultra-high definition (4K) video streaming, near-instant access to cloud services and augmented and virtual reality applications, with lower latency and multi-gigabit user data speeds, and bring more capacity and efficiency to networks, which may enable operators to offer new unlimited mobile data plans.

Looking ahead, we expect future releases of 5G to expand to new industries beyond traditional cellular communications and to create new business models and services, such as autonomous vehicles and artificial intelligence-based platforms designed to bring greater autonomy to manufacturing and other industrial applications (known as industrial IoT), through ultra-reliable, ultra-low latency communication links. We also expect 5G will enable connecting a significant number of “things” (also known as IoT, including the connected home, smart cities, wearables and voice and music devices), with

connectivity designed to meet diverse (low) power and cost requirements, as well as to address both low and high complexity applications.

Most 5G devices are expected to include multimode support for 3G, 4G and Wi-Fi, enabling service continuity where 5G has yet to be deployed and simultaneous connectivity across 4G technology, while also allowing mobile operators to utilize current network deployments. At the same time, 4G is expected to continue to evolve in parallel with the further development of 5G and become fundamental to many of the key 5G technologies (through multi-connectivity) in areas such as support for unlicensed spectrum, gigabit LTE user data speeds and LTE IoT that meets low power and cost requirements. The first phase of 5G networks supports mobile broadband services for the smartphone form factor both in lower spectrum bands below 6 GHz (sub-6), as well as higher bands above 6 GHz, including millimeter wave (mmWave). As with previous generations of mobile networks, it will take time to deploy new 5G networks.

Consumer demand in smartphones. From October 2018 through September 2019, approximately 1.4 billion smartphones are estimated to have shipped globally, representing a year-over-year decrease of approximately 4% (IDC, Mobile Phone Tracker, 2019Q3). Smartphone shipments in calendar 2020 are expected to be approximately flat year-over-year (IDC Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, 2019Q3). The slow-down in smartphone demand that began in the year ended September 2019, and that is expected to continue into calendar 2020, reflects further lengthening of replacement cycles, particularly in developed regions and China, where consumer demand is increasingly driven by new product launches and/or innovation cycles as the industry transitions to 5G.

Consumer demand for new types of experiences, combined with the needs of mobile operators and device manufacturers to provide differentiated features and services, is driving continued innovation within the smartphone. As a result, the smartphone has become the go-to device for social networking, music and video streaming, gaming, email and web browsing, among others. It is expected that 5G connectivity will drive further innovations within the smartphone and offer enhanced connectivity, which in turn will enable new applications. Given its advanced capabilities and utility, the smartphone has replaced many traditional consumer electronic devices, including digital cameras, video cameras, standalone GPS units, gaming devices and music players.

Transforming other industries. With their significant scale and highly integrated solutions, industries beyond mobile, including automotive, computing, IoT and networking, among others, are leveraging the same technology innovations found in today’s leading smartphones to enhance existing products and services as well as to create new products and services. Our inventions that contribute to the formation of advanced cellular technologies, such as 3G/4G and now 5G connectivity, are helping to drive, and in the case of 5G accelerate the pace of, this transformation. For example, in the automotive industry, approximately 72% of new vehicles produced are projected to have cellular connectivity by 2025, compared to 40% in 2018 (Strategy Analytics, October 2019). In addition, the installed base of non-mobile devices with cellular connectivity, which includes IoT devices among others, is projected to grow more than 150% between 2019 and 2023 (ABI Research, February 2019).

Wireless Technologies Overview

The growth in the use of wireless devices worldwide and the demand for data services and applications requires continuous innovation to improve the user experience, support new services, increase network capacity, make use of different frequency bands and allow for dense network deployments. To meet these requirements, different wireless communications technologies continue to evolve. For nearly three decades, we have invested heavily in research and development and have developed foundational technologies that drive the continued evolution of the wireless industry, including CDMA and OFDMA. As a result, we have developed and acquired (and continue to develop and acquire) significant related intellectual property. This intellectual property has been incorporated into the most widely accepted and deployed cellular wireless communications technology standards, and we have licensed it to several hundred licensees, including leading wireless device and infrastructure manufacturers.

Cellular wireless technologies. Relevant cellular wireless technologies can be grouped into the following categories.

TDMA-based. TDMA (Time Division Multiple Access)-based technologies are characterized by their access method allowing several users to share the same frequency channel by dividing the signal into different time slots. Most of these systems are classified as 2G (second generation) technology. The main examples of TDMA-based technologies are GSM (deployed worldwide), IS-136 (deployed in the Americas) and Personal Digital Cellular (PDC) (deployed in Japan).

The transition of wireless devices from 2G to 3G/4G and the emergence of 5G technologies continued around the world with estimated 3G/4G/5G connections up 11% year-over-year (GSMA Intelligence, November 2019). As of September 30, 2019, there were approximately 1.9 billion GSM connections worldwide, representing approximately 24% of total cellular connections, down from 30% as of September 30, 2018 (GSMA Intelligence, November 2019).

CDMA-based. CDMA-based technologies are characterized by their access method allowing several users to share the same frequency and time by allocating different orthogonal codes to individual users. Most of the CDMA-based technologies are classified as 3G technology.

There are a number of variants of CDMA-based technologies deployed around the world, in particular CDMA2000, EV-DO (Evolution Data Optimized), WCDMA (Wideband CDMA) and TD-SCDMA (Time Division-Synchronous CDMA) (deployed exclusively in China). CDMA-based technologies provide vastly improved capacity for voice and low-rate data services as compared to analog technologies and significant improvements over TDMA-based technologies such as GSM. To date, these technologies have seen many revisions. New specifications continue to be defined by 3GPP.

CDMA technologies ushered in a significant increase in mobile broadband data services. As of September 30, 2019, there were approximately 2.1 billion CDMA-based connections worldwide, representing approximately 27% of total cellular connections, down from 28% as of September 29, 2018 as consumers migrate to OFDMA-based technologies (GSMA Intelligence, November 2019).

OFDMA-based. OFDMA-based technologies are characterized by their access method allowing several users to share the same frequency band and time by allocating different subcarriers to individual users. Most of the OFDMA-based technologies to be deployed or expected to be deployed through the end of 2019 are classified as 4G technology. 5G heavily leverages OFDMA-based technologies. 3GPP developed 4G specifications through the standardization of the radio component (LTE) and the core network component (Enhanced Packet Core or EPC). Similarly, 3GPP has developed 5G specifications through the specification of the radio component (New Radio or NR) and the core network component (5G Core or 5GC). Unlike 4G that has fixed Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) parameterization, 5G has multiple OFDM parameterizations to address a wide range of spectrum and use cases. We continue to play a significant role in the development of LTE, LTE Advanced and LTE Advanced Pro, which are the predominant 4G technologies currently in use.

LTE is incorporated in 3GPP specifications starting from Release 8 and uses OFDMA in the downlink and single carrier FDMA (Frequency Division Multiple Access) in the uplink. LTE has two modes, FDD (frequency division duplex) and TDD (time division duplex), to support paired and unpaired spectrum, respectively, and continues to evolve as 3GPP defines new specifications. The principal benefit of LTE is its ability to leverage a wide range of spectrum (bandwidths of up to 20 MHz or more through aggregation). LTE is designed to seamlessly interwork with 3G technologies through multimode devices.

LTE Advanced brings many more enhancements, including carrier aggregation, advanced antenna techniques and optimization for small cells. Apart from improving the performance of existing networks, there are also new enhancements under the umbrella of LTE Advanced Pro, including LTE Direct for proximity-based device-to-device discovery, improved LTE broadcast, optimizations of narrowband communications designed for IoT (known as eMTC and NB-IoT) and the ability to use LTE Advanced in unlicensed spectrum (LTE Unlicensed) as well as in emerging shared spectrum bands in various regions (such as the Citizens Broadband Radio Service, or CBRS, in the United States). There are multiple options for deploying LTE Unlicensed for different deployment scenarios.

•	LAA (Licensed Assisted Access), introduced as part of 3GPP Release 13, aggregates unlicensed and licensed spectrum in the downlink and is being deployed globally by mobile operators. LAA is a key technology for many operators with limited licensed spectrum to deliver Gigabit LTE speeds.

•	eLAA (enhanced LAA) introduced as part of 3GPP Release 14, is an evolution of LAA, enables aggregation of unlicensed and licensed spectrum in the uplink.

Beginning with Release 14, 3GPP specifications provide enhancements specifically for vehicular communications known as cellular vehicle-to-everything (C-V2X), which includes both direct communication (vehicle-to-vehicle, vehicle-to-infrastructure and vehicle-to-pedestrian) in dedicated spectrum that is independent of a cellular network and cellular communications with networks in traditional mobile broadband licensed spectrum. C-V2X is designed to serve as the foundation for Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), enabling vehicles to communicate with each other and everything around them providing non-line-of-sight awareness for enhanced road safety and traffic efficiency. In future 3GPP releases (starting in Release 16, which is expected to be completed in June 2020), C-V2X is expected to benefit from the incorporation of 5G features, such as high throughput, lower latency and ultra-reliable communication capabilities to enable a higher level of performance and predictability as needed for automated driving and other advanced use cases.

As of September 30, 2019, there were approximately 3.8 billion global LTE connections worldwide, representing approximately 49% of total cellular connections, up from 41% as of September 30, 2018 (GSMA Intelligence, November 2019).

As of October 2019, approximately 900 wireless operators have commercially deployed or started testing LTE networks and 777 operators have commercially launched LTE in 228 countries, including 308 operators in 135 countries having commercially launched LTE Advanced networks (GSA, November 2019).

The wireless industry is actively developing and commercializing 5G technologies. Initial commercial 5G network deployments and device launches began in calendar 2019, and we expect that 5G network deployments and device launches will increase over the next several years. Some of our inventions that serve as foundational technologies for 3G and 4G now also serve as foundational technologies for 5G. 5G is designed to transform the role of wireless technologies and already incorporates or soon will incorporate advancements on 3G/4G features available today, including device-to-device capabilities and the use of all different types of spectrum (including licensed, unlicensed and shared spectrum). We continue to play a significant role in driving advancements in 5G, including contributing to 3GPP standardization activities that are defining the continued evolution of 5G NR and 5GC standards.

The first global set of 5G standards is incorporated in 3GPP specifications starting from Release 15, which was initially completed in March 2018 and subsequently updated in September 2018 and June 2019. Release 15 enables different architecture deployment choices of 5G networks while sharing the same radio access technology. The main advantages of 5G are its ability to target diverse services with very different technical requirements (from enhanced mobile broadband to massive IoT to mission critical services), its utilization of diverse types of spectrum (from the low bands to millimeter bands) and its ability to support diverse types of deployment scenarios. Predominant technological components of 5G include the ability to address ultra-reliable, low-latency communication, new channel coding schemes to efficiently support large data blocks, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) to increase coverage and network capacity and mobile millimeter wave to increase the data rate offered to users. 5G uses OFDMA in the downlink and either OFDMA or single carrier FDMA in the uplink depending on the use case. Like 3G and 4G, 5G supports carrier aggregation across spectrum bands, across FDD and TDD and across licensed and unlicensed spectrum (starting with Release 16), and 5G also supports dual connectivity across 4G and 5G. A key benefit of 5G is its ability to take advantage of very wide channel bandwidth such as 800/400/100 MHz (compared to LTE’s 20 MHz maximum bandwidth, which requires carrier aggregation to combine spectrum beyond 20 MHz). As with previous cellular generations, 5G is designed to support seamless compatibility with 2G/3G/4G technologies through multimode devices.

As of October 2019, 258 wireless operators in 94 countries have demonstrated, are testing, trialing or have been licensed to begin field trials of 5G-enabling and candidate technologies, and an additional 69 wireless operators in 50 countries have announced their intentions to make 5G available to their customers by 2022 (GSA, November 2019).

Other (non-cellular) wireless technologies. There are other, non-cellular wireless technologies that have also been broadly adopted.

Wireless Local Area Networks. Wireless local area networks (WLAN), such as Wi-Fi, link two or more nearby devices wirelessly and usually provide connectivity through an access point. Wi-Fi systems are based on standards developed by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) in the 802.11 family of standards. 802.11ax, the latest standard, adds advanced features such as downlink and uplink OFDMA and uplink multiple-user MIMO to the 802.11 baseline standard. This technology primarily targets connectivity for mobile devices, tablets, laptops and other consumer electronic devices using 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz spectrum. For 60GHz mmWave technology, 802.11ay adds wider channel bandwidth and the use of MIMO to the existing 802.11ad (also known as Gigabit Wi-Fi or WiGig) standard. 802.11ah was finalized in early 2017 and targets sub-1 GHz spectrum and is expected to be a solution for “connected home” applications that require long battery life. We played a leading role in the development of 802.11ac, 802.11ax, 802.11ay, 802.11ah, 802.11ad and 802.11p, and continue to play a lead role in the evolution of 802.11 family of standards. We are actively involved in innovative programs developed in the context of the Wi-Fi Alliance, a non-profit organization that drives global Wi-Fi adoption and evolution.

Bluetooth. Bluetooth is a wireless personal area network that provides wireless connectivity between devices over short distances ranging from a few centimeters to approximately one hundred meters. Bluetooth technology provides wireless connectivity to a wide range of fixed or mobile consumer electronic devices. Bluetooth functionalities are standardized by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group in various versions of the specification (from 1.0 to 5.1), which include different functionalities, such as enhanced data rate, low energy and mesh technologies. We are a leading contributor to Bluetooth technologies in the areas of mobile devices, HID (human interface device), A/V (audio/video) and mesh technologies.

Location Positioning Technologies. Location positioning technologies continue to evolve in order to deliver an enhanced commercial location experience and comply with the new mandates on location for E911 calls from the United States Federal Communications Commission. We are a key developer of the Assisted-GPS (A-GPS), Assisted Global Navigation Satellite System (A-GNSS) and WLAN positioning technologies used in most cellular handsets today. For uses requiring the best reliability and accuracy for E911 services and navigational based services, A-GPS, A-GNSS and WLAN provide leading-edge solutions.

The industry continues to evolve to support additional inputs for improving the location experience. Our products and intellectual property now support multiple constellations for A-GNSS, including: GPS, GLONASS, Galileo and BeiDou; Wi-Fi-based and Bluetooth-based positioning for WLAN, including, Wi-Fi RSSI (received signal strength indication) and Wi-Fi RTT (round-trip time) signals for indoor location; observed time difference of arrival positioning for LTE access (e.g., in rural

and indoor areas); and third-party inertial sensors. The combination of these different location solutions is used to ensure accurate location availability in all areas.

Other Significant Technologies used in Cellular and Certain Consumer Electronic Devices and Networks**.** We have played and continue to play a leading role in developing and/or have acquired many of the other technologies used across the wireless system, such as cellular handsets and certain other consumer electronic devices and networks, including:

•	RFFE chips and modules (including power amplifier modules, envelope tracker, antenna tuners, diversity modules, RF switches and micro-acoustic RF filters) designed for improved signal performance and reduced power consumption, while simplifying the design for manufacturers to develop LTE/5G multimode, multiband devices, including sub-6 GHz and mmWave devices;

• graphics and display processing functionality;

•	video coding based on the HEVC (high efficiency video codec) standard, which is being deployed to support 4K video and immersive media content;

• audio coding, including EVS (enhanced voice services) and MPEG-H 3D Audio;

•	the latest version of 3GPP’s codec for multimedia use and for voice/speech use;

•	multimedia transport, including MPEG-DASH (Dynamic Adaptive Streaming over HTTP) enabling advanced multimedia experiences;

• camera and camcorder functions;

• operating system and user interface features;

• on-device artificial intelligence (AI) features, including machine learning platforms;

• augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) features enabling new types of user experiences;

•	security and content protection systems for enhanced device security without compromising the user experience and ultrasonic fingerprint readers for single touch authentication;

• volatile (LP-DDR2, 3, 4) and non-volatile (eMMC) memory and related controllers; and

• power management systems for improved battery life and device charging.

Operating Segments

We have three reportable segments. We conduct business primarily through QCT (Qualcomm CDMA Technologies) and QTL (Qualcomm Technology Licensing), while QSI (Qualcomm Strategic Initiatives) makes strategic investments. Revenues in fiscal 2019, 2018 and 2017 for our reportable segments were as follows (in millions, except percentage data):

	2019				2018				2017
QCT	$	14,639			$	17,282			$	16,479
As a percent of total	60		%		76		%		74		%
QTL	$	4,591			$	5,042			$	6,412
As a percent of total	19		%		22		%		29		%
QSI	$	152			$	100			$	113
As a percent of total	1		%		—		%		1		%

QCT Segment. QCT is a leading developer and supplier of integrated circuits and system software based on CDMA, OFDMA and other technologies for use in wireless voice and data communications, networking, application processing, multimedia and global positioning system products. QCT’s integrated circuit products are sold and its system software is licensed to manufacturers that use our products in a broad range of devices in support of CDMA- and OFDMA-based technologies, from low-tier, entry-level devices primarily for emerging regions to premium-tier devices, including mobile devices (primarily smartphones), tablets, laptops, data modules, handheld wireless computers and gaming devices, access points and routers, broadband gateway equipment, data cards and infrastructure equipment, IoT devices and applications, other consumer electronics and automotive telematics and infotainment systems. Our 3G/4G/5G modem roadmap delivers the latest network technologies across multiple product tiers and devices. This roadmap is the result of extensive collaboration with manufacturers, operators, developers, governments and industry standards organizations, as well as our years of research into emerging network standards and the development of integrated circuits that take advantage of these new standards, while maintaining backward compatibility with existing standards.

The Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ family of integrated circuit products include the Snapdragon mobile, compute and automotive platforms. Each platform consists of application processors and wireless connectivity capabilities, including our cellular modem that provides core baseband modem functionality for voice and data communications, non-cellular wireless connectivity (such as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth) and global positioning functions. Our Snapdragon application processor functions include security, graphics, display, audio, video, camera and AI. Our central processing units are designed based on ARM

architecture and are designed to deliver high levels of compute performance at low power. Our Qualcomm® Hexagon™ processors are designed to support a variety of signal processing applications, including AI, audio and sensor processing. Qualcomm® Adreno™ graphics processing units are designed to deliver high quality graphics performance for visually rich 3D gaming and user interfaces. In addition to the highly integrated core system on a chip (SoC), we also design and supply supporting components, including the RF, PM (Power Management), audio, codecs, speaker amps and additional wireless connectivity integrated circuits. These supporting components, in addition to our cellular modems and application processors comprising our core SoC, are also sold as individual components. The combination of the Snapdragon SoC, system software and supporting components provide an overall platform with optimized performance and efficiency, enabling manufacturers to design and deliver powerful, slim and power-efficient devices ready for integration with the complex cellular networks worldwide.

Our portfolio of RF products includes Qualcomm® RFFE components that are designed to simplify the RF design for 5G front-end, LTE multimode and multiband mobile devices, to reduce power consumption and to improve radio performance. QCT offers an advanced portfolio of RFFE products for mobile devices, infrastructure, automotive, industrial IoT and other IoT applications. Our technologies provide comprehensive RFFE product offerings with system level performance from the modem and transceiver to the antenna that include power tracking, tuning systems, switching, multimode-multiband power amplification, low noise amplifiers, complex transmit and receive modules, in addition to discrete filtering applications across cellular, automotive, infrastructure, industrial IoT and other IoT industries.

Our wireless connectivity products also consist of integrated circuits and system software for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, frequency modulation (FM) and near field communications (NFC), as well as technologies that support location data and services, including GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou and Galileo. Our wireless connectivity products provide additional connectivity for mobile devices, tablets, laptops, IoT applications and automotive telematics and infotainment systems. QCT also offers standalone Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, fingerprint sensor, applications processor and Ethernet products for mobile devices, consumer electronics, computers, IoT applications, other connected devices and automotive telematics and infotainment systems. Our networking products include Wi-Fi, Ethernet and Powerline chips, network processors and software. These products help enable home and business networks to support the growing number of connected devices, digital media and data services.

Other than for our RFFE modules and RF filter acoustic products, QCT utilizes a fabless production model, which means that we do not own or operate foundries for the production of silicon wafers from which our integrated circuits are made. Therefore, we primarily rely on independent third-party suppliers to perform the manufacturing and assembly, and most of the testing, of our integrated circuits based primarily on our proprietary designs and test programs. Our suppliers also are responsible for the procurement of most of the raw materials used in the production of our integrated circuits. Integrated circuits are die cut from silicon wafers that have completed the package assembly and test manufacturing processes. The semiconductor package supports the electrical contacts that connect the integrated circuit to a circuit board. Die cut from silicon wafers are the essential components of all of our integrated circuits and a significant portion of the total integrated circuit cost. We employ both turnkey and two-stage manufacturing models to purchase our integrated circuits. Under the turnkey model, our foundry suppliers are responsible for delivering fully assembled and tested integrated circuits. Under the two-stage manufacturing model, we purchase die in singular or wafer form from semiconductor manufacturing foundries and contract with separate third-party suppliers for manufacturing services such as wafer bump, probe, assembly and the majority of our final test requirements. The primary foundry suppliers for our various digital, analog/mixed-signal, RF and PM integrated circuits are Global Foundries, Samsung Electronics, Semiconductor Manufacturing International, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) and United Microelectronics. The primary semiconductor assembly and test suppliers are Advanced Semiconductor Engineering, Amkor Technology, Siliconware Precision Industries and STATSChipPAC. The majority of our foundry and semiconductor assembly and test suppliers are located in the Asia-Pacific region.

QCT uses internal fabrication facilities to manufacture RFFE modules and RF filter acoustic products, and its manufacturing operations consist of front-end and back-end processes. The front-end processes primarily take place at manufacturing facilities located in Germany and Singapore and involve the imprinting of substrate silicon wafers with the circuitry required for semiconductors to function (also known as wafer fabrication). The back-end processes involve the assembly, packaging and test of semiconductors to prepare RFFE modules and RF filter acoustic products for distribution. The back-end manufacturing facilities are located in China, Germany and Singapore.

QCT’s sales are primarily made through standard purchase orders for delivery of products. QCT generally allows customers to reschedule delivery dates within a defined time frame and to cancel orders prior to shipment with or without payment of a penalty, depending on when the order is canceled. The industry in which QCT operates is intensely competitive. QCT competes worldwide with a number of U.S. and international designers and manufacturers of semiconductors. As a

result of global expansion by foreign and domestic competitors, technological changes, lengthening replacement cycles for mobile devices, device manufacturer concentrations and the potential for further industry consolidation, we anticipate the industry to remain very competitive. We believe that the principal competitive factors for our products include performance, level of integration, quality, compliance with industry standards, price, time-to-market, system cost, design and engineering capabilities, new product innovation, growth and scaling of distribution channels, desire by certain customers to use multiple suppliers and customer support. QCT also competes in both single-mode and multimode environments against alternative communications technologies. Additional competitive factors exist for QCT product offerings that have expanded into adjacent industry segments outside traditional cellular industries, including automotive, computing, IoT and networking. The automotive industry is subject to long design-in time frames, long product life cycles and a high degree of regulatory and safety requirements, necessitating suppliers to the industry to comply with stringent qualification processes, very low defect rates and high reliability standards, all of which results in a significant barrier to entry and may result in increased costs.

QCT’s current competitors include, but are not limited to, companies such as Broadcom, Cirrus Logic, Cypress Semiconductor, HiSilicon, Intel, Marvell, Maxim, MediaTek, Microchip Technology, Murata, Nordic Semiconductor, Nvidia, NXP Semiconductors, Qorvo, Realtek Semiconductor, Renesas, Samsung, Sequans Communications, Skyworks and Spreadtrum Communications (which is controlled by Tsinghua Unigroup). QCT also faces competition from products internally developed by our customers, including some of our largest customers, and from some early-stage companies. Our competitors devote significant amounts of their financial, technical and other resources to develop and market competitive products and, in some cases, to develop and adopt competitive digital communication or signal processing technologies, and those efforts may materially and adversely affect us. Although we have attained a significant position in the wireless industry, many of our current and potential competitors may have advantages over us that include, among others: motivation by our customers in certain circumstances to use our competitors’ integrated circuit products, to utilize their own internally-developed integrated circuit products or sell such products to others, including by selling them together with certain of their other products, or to choose alternative technologies; lower cost structures or a willingness and ability to accept lower prices and lower or negative margins for their products, particularly in China; foreign government support of other technologies or competitors or original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) that sell devices that do not contain our chipsets; better known brand names; ownership and control of manufacturing facilities and greater expertise in manufacturing processes; more extensive relationships with local distribution companies and OEMs in certain geographic regions (such as China); more experience in adjacent industry segments outside traditional cellular industries (such as automotive, computing, IoT and networking); and a more established presence in certain regions. These relationships may affect customers’ decisions to purchase products or license technology from us. Accordingly, new competitors or alliances among competitors could emerge and rapidly acquire significant market positions to our detriment.

QTL Segment. QTL grants licenses or otherwise provides rights to use portions of our intellectual property portfolio, which, among other rights, includes certain patent rights essential to and/or useful in the manufacture, sale and/or use of certain wireless products, including, without limitation, products implementing CDMA2000, WCDMA, CDMA TDD, LTE and/or OFDMA-based 5G standards and their derivatives. We have historically licensed our cellular standard-essential patents together with other Qualcomm patents that may be useful to such licensed products because in the past, licensees typically have desired to obtain the commercial benefits of receiving such broad patent rights from us. However, since 2015, our standard practice in China is to offer licenses to our 3G and 4G (and now 5G) cellular standard-essential Chinese patents for devices sold for use in China separately from our other patents. In addition, we also offer licenses to only our cellular standard-essential patents (including 3G, 4G and 5G) for both single-mode and multimode devices on a worldwide basis, and since 2018, an increasing number of new and existing licensees have elected to enter into worldwide license agreements covering only our cellular standard essential patents. Going forward, we continue to anticipate that a significant portion of QTL’s licensing revenues will be derived from licensees that have entered into license agreements covering only Qualcomm’s cellular standard essential patents. Our licensees manufacture wireless products including mobile devices (including handsets), other consumer devices (e.g., tablets and laptops), plug-in end user data modem cards and embedded modules for incorporation into machine-to-machine devices and certain end user products (excluding handsets and tablets), as well as infrastructure equipment required to establish and operate a network and equipment to test networks and cellular devices.

Since our founding in 1985, we have focused heavily on technology development and innovation. These efforts have resulted in a leading intellectual property portfolio related to foundational, system level technologies for the wireless industry. We have an extensive portfolio of United States and foreign patents, and we continue to pursue patent applications around the world. Our patents have broad coverage in many countries, including Brazil, China, India, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, the United States and countries in Europe and elsewhere. A substantial portion of our patents and patent applications relate to digital wireless communications technologies, including patents that are essential or may be important to the commercial implementation of CDMA2000, WCDMA (UMTS), TD-SCDMA, TD-CDMA (Time Division CDMA), OFDMA-based LTE and OFDMA-based 5G products. Our patent portfolio is the most widely and extensively licensed in the industry, with more

than 300 licensees. Additionally, we have a substantial patent portfolio related to key technologies used in communications and other devices and/or related services, some of which were developed in industry standards development bodies. These include certain video codecs, audio codecs, Wi-Fi, memory interfaces, wireless power, GPS and positioning, broadcast and streaming protocols, and short-range communication functionalities, including NFC and Bluetooth. Our patents cover a wide range of technologies across the entire wireless system, including the device (handsets and other wireless devices), not just the portion of such patented technologies incorporated into chipsets, and the network. Over the years, a number of companies have challenged our patent position, but companies in the mobile communications industry generally recognize that any company seeking to develop, manufacture and/or sell certain wireless products that use CDMA-based and/or OFDMA-based technologies will require a license or other rights to use our patents.

We have licensed or otherwise provided rights to use our patents to hundreds of companies on industry-accepted terms. Unlike some other companies in our industry that hold back certain key technologies, we offer companies substantially our entire patent portfolio for use in cellular devices and cell site infrastructure equipment. Our strategy to make our patented technologies broadly available has been a catalyst for industry growth, helping to enable a wide range of companies offering a broad array of wireless products and features while increasing the capabilities of and/or driving down average and low-end selling prices for 3G handsets and other wireless devices. By licensing or otherwise providing rights to use our patents to a wide range of equipment manufacturers, encouraging innovative applications, supporting equipment manufacturers with integrated chipset and software products and focusing on improving the efficiency of the airlink for wireless operators, we have helped 3G and 3G/4G multimode evolve and grow and reduce device pricing, all at a faster pace than the 2G (second generation) technologies such as GSM that preceded it. 5G network deployments and commercial 3G/4G/5G multimode device sales began in 2019 and will continue into 2020 and beyond. By licensing or otherwise providing rights to use our patents to a wide range of equipment manufacturers, 5G will continue to encourage innovative applications through enhanced mobile broadband services with lower latency and multi-gigabit user data speeds and bring more capacity and efficiency to wireless networks.

Upon the initial deployment of OFDMA-based networks, the products implementing such technologies generally have been multimode and implement OFDMA-based and CDMA-based technologies. The licenses granted under our existing license agreements generally cover multimode CDMA/OFDMA (3G/4G/5G) devices, and our licensees are obligated to pay royalties under their license agreements for such devices.

Standards bodies have been informed that we hold patents that might be essential for all 3G standards that are based on CDMA. We have committed to such standards bodies that we will offer to license our essential patents for these CDMA standards consistent with our commitments to those bodies. We have also informed standards bodies that we hold patents and pending patent applications that are potentially essential for LTE standards, including FDD and TDD versions and have committed to offer to license our essential patents for these LTE standards consistent with our commitments to those bodies. We have informed standards bodies that we hold patents and pending patent applications that are essential for 5G technologies and have committed to offer to license our essential patents for these 5G standards consistent with our commitments to those bodies. We have made similar commitments with respect to certain other technologies implemented in industry standards.

QTL licensing revenues include license fees and royalties. Licensees pay royalties based on their sales of products incorporating or using our licensed intellectual property and may also pay a fixed license fee in one or more installments. Sales-based royalties are generally based upon a percentage of the wholesale (i.e., licensee’s) selling price of complete licensed products, net of certain permissible deductions (including transportation, insurance, packing costs and other items). We broadly provide per unit royalty caps that apply to certain categories of complete wireless devices, namely smartphones, tablets, laptops and smartwatches, and provide for a maximum royalty amount payable per device. Revenues generated from royalties are subject to quarterly and annual fluctuations.

The vast majority of QTL revenues have been generated through our licensees’ sales of CDMA2000-based, WCDMA-based and LTE-based products (including 3G and 3G/4G multimode devices), such as smartphones and feature phones. We have invested and continue to invest in both the acquisition and development of OFDMA technology and intellectual property and have generated the industry leading patent portfolio applicable to LTE, LTE Advanced and LTE Advanced Pro. Some of our inventions that serve as foundational technologies for 3G and 4G now also serve as foundational technologies for 5G. We have invested and continue to invest in the development of 5G and continue to play a significant role in driving advancements of 5G. Nevertheless, we face competition in the development of intellectual property for future generations of digital wireless communications technologies and services.

Separate and apart from licensing manufacturers of wireless devices and network equipment, we have entered into certain arrangements with competitors of our QCT segment, such as Broadcom. A principal purpose of these arrangements is to provide our QCT segment and the counterparties certain freedom of operation with respect to each party’s integrated

circuits business. In every case, these agreements expressly reserve the right for QTL to seek royalties from the customers of such integrated circuit suppliers with respect to such suppliers’ customers’ sales of CDMA-, WCDMA- and OFDMA-based wireless devices into which such suppliers’ integrated circuits are incorporated.

Our license agreements also may provide us with rights to use certain of our licensees’ technology and intellectual property to manufacture, sell and/or use certain components (e.g., Application-Specific Integrated Circuits) and related software, cellular devices and/or infrastructure equipment.

We are currently subject to various governmental investigations and private legal proceedings challenging our patent licensing practices, which may require us to change our patent licensing practices as described more fully in this Annual Report in “Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors” under the heading “Changes in our patent licensing practices, whether due to governmental investigations or private legal proceedings challenging those practices, or otherwise, could adversely impact our business and results of operations” and in “Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements, Note 7. Commitments and Contingencies.”

QSI Segment. QSI makes strategic investments primarily through our Qualcomm Ventures arm that are focused on expanding or opening new opportunities for our technologies as well as supporting the design and introduction of new products and services (or enhancing existing products or services). Many of these strategic investments are in early-stage companies in a variety of industries and applications, including, but not limited to, artificial intelligence, automotive, digital healthcare, enterprise software and solutions, IoT, mobile and networking. Investments primarily include non-marketable equity securities and to a lesser extent, non-marketable convertible debt instruments. In addition, QSI segment results include revenues and related costs associated with development contracts with one of our equity method investees. As part of our strategic investment activities, we intend to pursue various exit strategies for each of our QSI investments in the foreseeable future.

Other Businesses. Nonreportable segments include our Qualcomm Government Technologies or QGOV (formerly Qualcomm Cyber Security Solutions) business and other wireless technology and service initiatives. During fiscal 2019, we completed the sale of our mobile health nonreportable segment, and we combined our Small Cells nonreportable segment into our QCT segment. Prior period segment information has not been adjusted to conform to the new segment presentation as such adjustments are insignificant. QGOV provides development and other services and sells related products to U.S. government agencies and their contractors. Additional information regarding our operating segments is provided in this Annual Report in “Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements, Note 8. Segment Information.” Information regarding seasonality is provided in this Annual Report in “Part II, Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in the “Our Business and Operating Segments” section under the heading “Seasonality.”

Cost Plan

In the second quarter of fiscal 2018, we announced a Cost Plan designed to align our cost structure to our long-term margin targets. As part of this plan, we initiated a series of targeted actions across our businesses with the objective to reduce annual costs by $1 billion, excluding incremental costs resulting from any future acquisition of a business. Actions taken under this plan have been completed and resulted in us achieving substantially all of this target in fiscal 2019 based on our run rate exiting the second quarter of fiscal 2019, excluding litigation costs that were in excess of the baseline spend.

Additional information regarding our Cost Plan is provided in this Annual Report in “Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements, Note 10. Cost Plan.”

Corporate Structure

We operate our businesses through our parent company, QUALCOMM Incorporated, and multiple direct and indirect subsidiaries. We have developed our corporate structure in order to address various legal, regulatory, tax, contractual compliance, operational and other matters. Substantially all of our products and services businesses, including QCT, and substantially all of our engineering, research and development functions, are operated by Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. (QTI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of QUALCOMM Incorporated, and QTI’s subsidiaries. QTL is operated by QUALCOMM Incorporated, which owns the vast majority of our patent portfolio. Neither QTI nor any of its subsidiaries has any right, power or authority to grant any licenses or other rights under or to any patents owned by QUALCOMM Incorporated.

Revenue Concentrations and Significant Customers

A small number of customers/licensees historically have accounted for a significant portion of our consolidated revenues. In fiscal 2019, 2018 and 2017, revenues from Apple Inc. and its contract manufacturers (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd./Foxconn, its affiliates and other suppliers to Apple), Samsung Electronics and combined revenues from GuangDong

OPPO Mobile Telecommunications and vivo Communication Technology, and their respective affiliates (including BBK), each comprised 10% or more of consolidated revenues. Revenues from Xiaomi also comprised 10% or more of consolidated revenues in fiscal 2019 and 2018. Revenues in fiscal 2018 and 2017 were negatively impacted by our prior dispute with Apple Inc. and its contract manufacturers. Revenues in fiscal 2019 were positively impacted by our settlement of such dispute in the third quarter of fiscal 2019. We expect to begin recording revenues for new chipset models under our recently announced multi-year chipset agreement with Apple in the second half of fiscal 2020.

Research and Development

The wireless communications industry is characterized by rapid technological change, evolving industry standards and frequent new product introductions, requiring a continuous effort to enhance existing products and technologies and to develop new products and technologies. We have significant engineering resources, including engineers with substantial expertise in CDMA, OFDMA and a broad range of other technologies. Using these engineering resources, we expect to continue to invest in research and development in a variety of ways in an effort to extend the demand for our products, and to utilize that research and development in adjacent industry segments outside of traditional cellular industries (such as automotive, computing, IoT and networking), including continuing the development of CDMA, OFDMA and other technologies (such as RF), developing alternative technologies for certain specialized applications, participating in the formulation of new voice and data communication standards and technologies, and assisting in deploying digital voice and data communications networks around the world. Our research and development team has a demonstrated track record of innovation in voice and data communication technologies and application processor technology, among others.

We continue to invest significant resources towards advancements in OFDMA-based 4G technologies (including LTE) and 5G technologies. We also engage in acquisitions and other transactions, such as joint ventures, to meet certain technology needs, to obtain development resources or open or expand opportunities for our technologies and to support the design and introduction of new products and services (or enhancing existing products and services) for voice and data communications and new industry segments outside of the traditional cellular industry. Our most recent significant transaction was the formation of, and subsequent acquisition of the remaining minority ownership interest in, RF360 Holdings to enable delivery of RFFE modules and RF filters into fully integrated products for mobile devices and IoT applications, among others. See “Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements, Note 9. Acquisitions” in this Annual Report for additional information.

We make investments to provide our integrated circuit customers with chipsets designed on leading-edge technology nodes that combine multiple technologies for use in consumer devices (e.g., smartphones, tablets and laptops), consumer electronics and other products (e.g., access points and routers, data cards and infrastructure equipment). In addition to 3G, 4G and 5G technologies, our chipsets support other wireless and wired connectivity technologies, including Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Ethernet, location positioning and Powerline communication. Our integrated chipsets often include multiple technologies, including advanced multimode modems, application processors and graphics engines, as well as the tools to connect these diverse technologies. We continue to support Android, Windows and other mobile client software environments in our chipsets.

We develop on our own, and with our partners, innovations that are integrated into our product portfolio to further expand the opportunity for wireless communications and enhance the value of our products and services. These innovations are expected to enable our customers to improve the performance or value of their existing services, offer these services more affordably and introduce revenue-generating broadband data services ahead of their competition.

We have research and development centers in various locations throughout the world that support our global development activities and ongoing efforts to develop and/or advance 4G, 5G and a broad range of other technologies. We continue to use our substantial engineering resources and expertise to develop new technologies, applications and services and make them available to licensees to help grow the communications industry and generate new or expanded licensing opportunities.

We also make investments in opportunities that leverage our existing technical and business expertise to deploy new and expanded product areas, such as RFFE, and enter into adjacent industry segments, such as products for automotive, computing, IoT (including the connected home, smart cities, wearables, voice and music and robotics) and networking, among others.

Sales and Marketing

Sales and marketing activities of our operating segments are discussed under Operating Segments. Other marketing activities include public relations, advertising, digital marketing and social media, participation in technical conferences and trade shows, development of business cases and white papers, competitive analyses, industry intelligence and other marketing programs, such as marketing and/or market development funds with our customers. Our Corporate Marketing department

provides company information on our Internet site and through other channels regarding our products, strategies and technology to industry analysts and media.

Competition

Competition faced by our operating segments is discussed under Operating Segments. Competition in the wireless communications industry throughout the world continues to increase at a rapid pace as consumers, businesses and governments realize the potential of wireless communications products and services. We have facilitated competition in the wireless communications industry by licensing our technologies to a large number of manufacturers. Although we have attained a significant position in the traditional cellular industry, many of our current and potential competitors may have advantages over us that include, among others: motivation by our customers in certain circumstances to use our competitors’ integrated circuit products, to utilize their own internally-developed integrated circuit products or sell such products to others, including by selling them together with certain of their other products, or to choose alternative technologies; lower cost structures or a willingness and ability to accept lower prices and lower or negative margins for their products, particularly in China; foreign government support of other technologies or competitors or original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) that sell devices that do not contain our chipsets; better known brand names; ownership and control of manufacturing facilities and greater expertise in manufacturing processes; more extensive relationships with local distribution companies and OEMs in certain geographic regions (such as China); more experience in adjacent industry segments outside traditional cellular industries (such as automotive, computing, IoT and networking); and a more established presence in certain regions. These relationships may affect customers’ decisions to purchase products or license technology from us. Accordingly, new competitors or alliances among competitors could emerge and rapidly acquire significant market positions to our detriment.

We expect competition to increase as our current competitors expand their product offerings and introduce new technologies and services in the future and as additional companies compete with our products or services based on 3G, 4G, 5G or other technologies. Although we intend to continue to make substantial investments in developing new products and technologies and improving existing products and technologies to strengthen and/or maintain our competitive position, our competitors may introduce alternative products, services or technologies that threaten our business. It is also possible that the prices we charge for our products and services may continue to decline as competition continues to intensify. See also the Risk Factor entitled “Our industry is subject to competition in an environment of rapid technological changes. Our success depends in part on our ability to adapt to such changes and compete effectively; and such changes and competition could result in decreased demand for our products or declining average selling prices for our products or those of our customers or licensees.**”

Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability

We strive to better our local and global communities through ethical business practices, socially empowering technology applications, educational and environmental programs and employee diversity and volunteerism.

•	Our Governance. We aim to demonstrate accountability, transparency, integrity and ethical business practices throughout our operations and interactions with our stakeholders.

•	Our Products. We strive to meet or exceed industry standards for product responsibility and supplier management.

•	Our Workplace. We endeavor to provide a safe and healthy work environment where diversity is embraced, innovation is encouraged, and opportunities for training, growth and advancement are available for all employees.

•	Our Community. We have strategic relationships with a wide range of local organizations and programs that develop and strengthen communities worldwide.

•	Our Commitment to STEM Education. We aim to promote and improve science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education at all levels and expand opportunities for underrepresented students in STEM careers.

•	Our Environment. We aim to expand our operations while minimizing our carbon footprint, conserving water and reducing waste.

•	Qualcomm® Wireless Reach™ Initiative. We invest in strategic programs that foster entrepreneurship, aid in public safety, enhance delivery of health care, enrich teaching and learning and improve environmental sustainability through the use of advanced wireless technologies.

Employees

At September 29, 2019, we employed approximately 37,000 full-time, part-time and temporary employees. During fiscal 2019, the number of employees increased by approximately 1,600, primarily due to increases in engineering resources, partially offset by actions taken under our Cost Plan.

Available Information

Our Internet address is www.qualcomm.com. There we make available, free of charge, our annual report on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, proxy statements and any amendments to those reports, as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file such material with, or furnish it to, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). We also make available on our Internet site public financial information for which a report is not required to be filed with or furnished to the SEC. Our SEC reports and other financial information can be accessed through the investor relations section of our Internet site. The information found on our Internet site is not part of this or any other report we file with or furnish to the SEC.

Information about our Executive Officers

Our executive officers (and their ages at September 29, 2019) are as follows:

Steve Mollenkopf, age 50, has served as Chief Executive Officer since March 2014 and as a director since December 2013. He served as Chief Executive Officer-elect and President from December 2013 to March 2014 and as President and Chief Operating Officer from November 2011 to December 2013. In addition, he served as Executive Vice President and Group President from September 2010 to November 2011 and as Executive Vice President and President, Qualcomm CDMA Technologies (QCT) from August 2008 to September 2010. Mr. Mollenkopf joined Qualcomm in 1994 as an engineer and throughout his tenure at Qualcomm has held several other technical and leadership positions. Mr. Mollenkopf served as a member of the board of directors of General Electric Company from November 2016 to April 2018. Mr. Mollenkopf holds a B.S. degree in Electrical Engineering from Virginia Tech and an M.S. degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Michigan.

Cristiano R. Amon, age 49, has served as President, Qualcomm Incorporated since January 2018. He served as Executive Vice President, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., a subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated (QTI) and President, QCT from November 2015 to January 2018. He served as Executive Vice President, QTI and Co-President, QCT from October 2012 to November 2015, Senior Vice President, Qualcomm Incorporated and Co-President, QCT from June 2012 to October 2012 and as Senior Vice President, QCT Product Management from October 2007 to June 2012. Mr. Amon joined Qualcomm in 1995 as an engineer and throughout his tenure at Qualcomm has held several other technical and leadership positions. Mr. Amon holds a B.S. degree in Electrical Engineering from UNICAMP, the State University of Campinas, Brazil.

Brian T. Modoff, age 60, has served as Executive Vice President, Strategy and Mergers & Acquisitions since October 2015. Prior to joining Qualcomm, Mr. Modoff was a Managing Director in Equity Research at Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., a provider of financial services, from March 1999 to October 2015. Prior to joining Deutsche Bank, Mr. Modoff was a research analyst at several financial institutions from November 1993 to March 1999. Mr. Modoff previously worked in defense electronics, including at Rockwell International in manufacturing management, and for the U.S. Navy as a communications technician. Mr. Modoff holds a B.A. degree in Economics from California State University, Fullerton and a Master of International Management from the Thunderbird School of Global Management.

Akash Palkhiwala, age 44, has served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer since November 2019. He served as Senior Vice President and Interim Chief Financial Officer from August 2019 to November 2019. He served as Senior Vice President, (QCT) Finance, QTI from December 2015 to August 2019, and Senior Vice President and Treasurer, Qualcomm Incorporated from October 2014 to December 2015. Mr. Palkhiwala served as Vice President, (QCT) Finance, QTI from October 2012 to October 2014 and Vice President, (QCT) Finance from October 2009 to October 2012. He served in various other finance roles since joining the Company in March 2001. Prior to joining Qualcomm, Mr. Palkhiwala was an Analyst at KeyBank. Mr. Palkhiwala has an undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering from L.D. College of Engineering in India and an M.B.A from the University of Maryland.

Alexander H. Rogers, age 62, has served as Executive Vice President and President, Qualcomm Technology Licensing (QTL) since October 2016. He served as Senior Vice President and President, QTL from September 2016 to October 2016, Senior Vice President, Deputy General Counsel and General Manager, QTL from March 2016 to September 2016, Senior Vice President and Deputy General Counsel from October 2015 to March 2016 and Senior Vice President and Legal Counsel from April 2007 to October 2015. Prior to transitioning to QTL, Mr. Rogers led Qualcomm’s litigation group. Mr. Rogers joined Qualcomm in January 2001 as an attorney. Prior to joining Qualcomm, Mr. Rogers was a partner at the law firm of Gray, Cary, Ware & Friedenrich (now DLA Piper), specializing in intellectual property and commercial litigation. Mr. Rogers holds B.A. and M.A. degrees in English Literature from Georgetown University and a J.D. degree from Georgetown University Law Center.

Donald J. Rosenberg, age 68, has served as Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary since October 2007. He served as Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of Apple Inc. from November

2006 to October 2007. From May 1975 to November 2006, Mr. Rosenberg held numerous positions at IBM Corporation, including Senior Vice President and General Counsel. Mr. Rosenberg has served as a member of the board of directors of NuVasive, Inc. since February 2016 and is presently NuVasive’s lead independent director. Mr. Rosenberg holds a B.S. degree in Mathematics from the State University of New York at Stony Brook and a J.D. degree from St. John’s University School of Law.

Michelle Sterling, age 52, has served as Executive Vice President, Human Resources since May 2015. She served as Senior Vice President, Human Resources from October 2007 to May 2015. Ms. Sterling joined Qualcomm in 1994 and throughout her tenure at Qualcomm has held several other human resources and leadership positions. Ms. Sterling has served as a member of the board of directors of Digital Turbine, Inc. since June 2019. Ms. Sterling holds a B.S. degree in Business Management from the University of Redlands.

James H. Thompson, age 55, has served as Executive Vice President, Engineering, QTI and Chief Technology Officer since March 2017. He served as Executive Vice President, Engineering, QTI from October 2012 to March 2017 and as Senior Vice President, Engineering, Qualcomm Incorporated from July 1998 to October 2012. Dr. Thompson joined Qualcomm in 1992 as a senior engineer and throughout his tenure at Qualcomm held several other technical and leadership positions. Dr. Thompson holds B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Electrical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin.