The chipset giants like MediaTek and Qualcomm are facing a drop in shipments as proprietary SoCs from Google and Samsung gain share in 2026.
In a Counterpoint Research report disclosing SoC (system on a chip) sales comparing H1 2025 to H1 2026, chipset shipments have declined by 15%. A significant drop like that indicates smartphones from major Android manufacturers have also dropped. And with smartphone companies like Google and Samsung continuing to develop proprietary chipsets, MediaTek and Qualcomm have seen a drop in market share.
Mediatek’s SoC share has decreased from 37% to 32%, while Qualcomm’s share fell to 22% from 26%. Google, Samsung, and UNISOC have gained SoC share, but the loss from the manufacturers behind the Snapdragon 8 Gen series and the Dimensity lineup has been divided relatively evenly.
MediaTek and Qualcomm’s shipments declined by more than 25% YoY in H1 2026. Meanwhile, Apple, Samsung, Google and UNISOC posted sturdy shipment growth during the period, each for distinct reasons detailed below.
The blame falls on memory costs that show no sign of letup. The rise is causing manufacturers to increase device prices to compensate for component costs, and with a reported 300% increase in memory costs YoY, SoC costs no longer account for the bulk in each shipment.
