Counterpoint has published the global chip sales report for Q1 2026 where Apple has ranked first in the shipment with its A-series mobile SoCs, while Huawei HiSilicon observed both positive and negative shifts. The quarter also appeared tough for MediaTek and Qualcomm due to the memory mess.
Starting with Apple, the company saw a significant increase in its chipset sales in the first quarter of this year. A credit behind the leap is the iPhone 17 series sales, including the budget-friendly e-tagged model.
A19 series chip sales are higher than the A18 version due to the iPhone 17 Pro variants that gained traction due to their design upgrade and top-notch camera parameters.
Huawei has also made huge strides in the chip industry in the past few years, especially in 2025. The company launched the Kirin 9030 chip series for the Mate 80.
2025 Mate phones cover many surprising upgrades. But the official announcement of its chip has been in the spotlight throughout the quarter and is still buzzing.
The premium Huawei smartphone shipments increased, leading to a huge hike in Kirin processor sales. However, mid-rangers like the Nova 15 didn’t achieve the expected level of success. Thus, it affected the Huawei HiSilicon chip sales in the global ranking for Q1 2026.
As per the report:
“HiSilicon’s shipments declined YoY in Q1 2026. Premium-segment sales increased following the launch of the Mate 80 series. But mid-tier shipments declined due to the earlier-than-usual launch of the Nova 15 series in Q4 2025, which shifted some demand into the previous quarter.”
(Image Credits: Counterpoint)
MediaTek witnessed a drop year-over-year in entry-level and mainstream chip sales due to the ongoing memory crisis. Since the company didn’t debut Dimensity 9500 Plus, brands have to rely on Dimensity 9500, which is also a reason for the decline.
OPPO Reno 15 smartphones powered by the Dimensity 8450 chip helped to grow the sales of the 8 series chipsets. Qualcomm is another chipmaker to face a decline as the Galaxy S26 launch was delayed and Samsung moved towards Exynos 2600.
UNISOC’s chip sales progressed YoY in Q1 2026 due to a design victory at Redmi. How far the memory shortage will affect these chipmakers will be worth looking at.
The post Apple tops while Huawei HiSilicon slips in Q1 2026 global chip sales appeared first on Huawei Central.
