Qualcomm Technologies in collaboration with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has announced support for the new and recently launched L1 signals of India’s navigation satellite system NavIC (Navigation with Indian Constellation) in select chipset platforms across the Company’s upcoming portfolio. The initiative will help further accelerate the adoption of NavIC and enhance the geolocation capabilities and overall robustness of mobile, automotive and the Internet of Things (IoT) solutions in the region – with the backing of engineering talent in India.   

The solution is built on Qualcomm Technologies’ leading foundational inventions in location-based position technology. Qualcomm Location Suite now supports up to seven satellite constellations concurrently, including the use of all of NavIC’s L1 and L5 signals for more accurate location performance, faster time-to-first-fix (TTFF) position acquisition, and further improved robustness of location-based services. These enhancements will enable select mobile, automotive and IoT platforms to better serve key industries and technology ecosystems in the region and will help improve user experience for location-based applications especially in dense urban environments where geolocation accuracy tends to degrade.   

 “We’re pleased to enhance our commitment to India by enabling support for the newly launched NavIC L1 signals in our chipset platforms. We continue our work with ISRO to further accelerate NavIC’s adoption and to enable more advanced geolocation applications with the latest NavIC technologies,” said Francesco Grilli, Vice President, Product Management, at Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., who is leading efforts to work with device manufacturers globally in developing smartphones with satellite communication capabilities.  

“Qualcomm Technologies is focused on building long-term partnerships within the Indian industry utilizing our extensive engineering expertise and cutting-edge technologies to enable and propel India-centric innovations and use cases. Working with ISRO on the addition of next-generation NavIC L1 signal to L5 signal to our Snapdragon mobile platforms is a prime example of India-focused collaboration and our commitment to deliver premium experiences to our users in the Indian sub-continent.  Enabling next-generation NavIC on Snapdragon will drive innovative use cases for Indian consumers across multiple segments including smartphones, IoT and automotive,” said Savi Soin, President, Qualcomm India.   

Speaking about the development, Manish Saxena, Director, Satellite Navigation Programme Office at ISRO Headquarters said, “NavIC is a significant step towards using space technology for national development. ISRO is proud to see the increasing adoption of NavIC and is eager to bring the benefits of this indigenous solution to all users. The L1 signals will be a critical next step by enabling better performance of location-based services in the consumer segment. ISRO appreciates Qualcomm Technologies for enabling NavIC L1 on its upcoming mobile platforms thereby accelerating its adoption.”  

Additional support for the NavIC L1 signals will be available in select Qualcomm Technologies’ chipset platforms starting in the second half of 2024, and commercial devices supporting the NavIC L1 signals are expected to be available during the first half of 2025. Qualcomm Technologies is scheduled to demonstrate support for the newly launched NavIC L1 signals in the Snapdragon Mobile Platforms at its Qualcomm Innovation Forum event in Bengaluru mid-December 2023.