Qualcomm, Inc. (QCOM) stocks declined 3% on Tuesday, marking the third consecutive day of losses, after short seller Hunterbrook Media discovered hidden HTML code on Qualcomm's website that appeared to describe a partnership with AI startup Anthropic. Sources close to both companies confirmed there was no real partnership, and Qualcomm removed the code after Hunterbrook contacted the company for comment. The incident occurred as Qualcomm pushes deeper into the AI infrastructure market, having recently unveiled its Dragonfly portfolio targeting more than $15 billion in annual data-center revenue by fiscal 2029.
Hunterbrook Discovers Hidden Anthropic Code on Qualcomm Website
Hunterbrook Media said on X that it found hidden HTML on Qualcomm's website this weekend describing an apparent collaboration with Anthropic, the AI startup behind Claude. "This weekend, we found something weird: $QCOM had hidden HTML on its website describing a partnership with Anthropic," Hunterbrook said. "The problem: It's not real."
According to the short seller, sources close to both companies said there was no partnership and the material had seemingly been added to Qualcomm's website by mistake. Hunterbrook said Qualcomm removed the code after being contacted for comment. Qualcomm and Anthropic had not publicly announced a partnership.
Hunterbrook co-founder Sam Koppelman called the incident "one of the most incompetent displays" he had seen from Qualcomm. He said that the researchers initially believed they had uncovered a secret infrastructure partnership but instead concluded that Qualcomm had mishandled its website.
Hunterbrook and Citrini Cancel Planned Report
The discovery initially appeared significant enough for Hunterbrook and research firm Citrini to prepare a joint article. They ultimately pulled the story after checking with sources and determining that the apparent partnership was not genuine.
"Honestly, for a second it seemed we had a major story from 'inspect element,'" Citrini said. Hunterbrook called the episode a warning about relying too heavily on AI-assisted coding without completing the traditional reporting and verification process. "Sometimes, the truth is hidden---and sometimes even that truth isn't what it seems," it said.
Qualcomm Targets AI Infrastructure Market
Any Qualcomm-Anthropic partnership would have drawn significant investor attention as Qualcomm pushes deeper into the AI infrastructure market. The chipmaker recently unveiled its Dragonfly portfolio of CPUs, connectivity products and AI inference accelerators, targeting more than $15 billion in annual data-center revenue by fiscal 2029. With Qualcomm seeking to challenge Nvidia and AMD in AI chips, a tie-up with Anthropic, one of the industry's largest AI model developers, would have been viewed as a major development.
The website mix-up also comes shortly after Anthropic reportedly faced scrutiny over a hidden tracking code in Claude Code. The company apparently later removed the code following privacy concerns.
Retail Traders Express Mixed Sentiment on QCOM Stocks
On Stocktwits, retail sentiment for QCOM was 'bearish' amid 'low' message volume.
One user said, "$QCOM Stock went from best in show to most hated in one month all on positive news."
Another user said, "$QCOM I know this has always been cheap but, I'm quite surprised just how cheap it is now, with multiple AI iron's in the fire. Really not taking on too much risk right here."
QCOM stock has risen 18% over the past year.
FAQ
What did Hunterbrook Media discover on Qualcomm's website this weekend?
Hunterbrook Media found hidden HTML code on Qualcomm's website that appeared to describe a partnership with Anthropic, the AI startup behind Claude. Sources close to both companies confirmed there was no real partnership, and Qualcomm removed the code after Hunterbrook contacted the company for comment.
Why did Hunterbrook and Citrini cancel their planned report on Qualcomm?
Hunterbrook and research firm Citrini initially prepared a joint article about the apparent Qualcomm-Anthropic partnership. They pulled the story after checking with sources and determining that the apparent partnership was not genuine and was due to a website error.
How has QCOM stock performed recently?
QCOM stock declined 3% on Tuesday, marking the third consecutive day of losses. Over the past year, QCOM stock has risen 18%.
