Qualcomm Reveals Plan to Acquire Arduino

Qualcomm has announced its plan to acquire Arduino, making edge computing and AI development more accessible to developers everywhere.

Coinciding with the announcement, Arduino unveiled the UNO Q, the first board developed under Qualcomm’s influence, blending Arduino’s trademark simplicity with the computational power of Qualcomm’s DragonWing platform to deliver a new generation of AI-ready hardware.

The newly unveiled Arduino UNO Q demonstrates how the two companies plan to blend their strengths.

The board integrates a Qualcomm DragonWing QRB2210 processor, featuring a quad-core Cortex-A53 CPU and Adreno GPU, with a STMicroelectronics STM32U585 microcontroller for real-time control tasks allowing developers to run Linux and real-time applications simultaneously, bridging the gap between high-level AI workloads and low-level hardware control.

Equipped with built-in Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, USB-C, camera and display interfaces, and full compatibility with traditional Arduino shields, the UNO Q is purpose-built for AI at the edge.

It empowers developers to experiment with computer vision, robotics, and sensor-driven automation, domains that were once beyond the reach of standard maker hardware. Early reports place its price between $44 and $59, keeping it affordable for educators, students, and enthusiasts alike.

For Qualcomm, the acquisition represents a strategic leap beyond the chip market. By integrating Arduino’s massive developer base, estimated at over 33 million users.

In recent years, Qualcomm has expanded its presence in the edge-AI space, acquiring Edge Impulse and Foundries.io to build out its software and IoT infrastructure. Arduino now completes that ecosystem, giving developers a seamless path from prototype to production on Qualcomm silicon.