BlackBerry CEO highlights robotics growth as QNX royalty backlog tops $1.2 billion

BlackBerry is looking to sell the software beneath AI-powered robots, not the robots themselves. In an October 26 interview with CNBC’s Jim Cramer, CEO John Giamatteo called robotics one of the fastest-growing businesses within its QNX division. The company’s QNX royalty backlog has surpassed $1.2 billion, with physical AI among several drivers of growth.

AI work and safety controls run separately

Physical AI means machines that interact with the real world, rather than simply generate text or images. BlackBerry’s proposed role is to supply underlying software that helps those machines operate safely and reliably, extending work QNX already does in automotive systems.

Nvidia’s June 22 technical explanation of Halos for Robotics provides a concrete view of that role. In one configuration, its IGX Thor computer runs two isolated virtual machines—separate software environments on the same hardware. Linux handles AI and application workloads, while QNX handles safety-critical functions.

A software layer called a hypervisor creates that separation. Nvidia describes QNX as a real-time operating system with a history in certified safety systems. It says adding QNX enables stronger separation between software components for uses requiring higher safety integrity.

Giamatteo said Nvidia has “standardized on QNX as the platform of choice” for its Halos Safety Stack. Nvidia’s June documentation also describes a Linux-only Halos Core configuration, alongside Linux plus QNX. His characterization should not be read as saying every documented Halos configuration requires QNX.

From braking systems to warehouse equipment

The Nvidia relationship began in automotive, Giamatteo said. He pointed to opportunities involving mobile robots, autonomous forklifts and pallet-moving platforms traveling to docking stations. Those examples put industrial equipment at the center of his description of the opportunity.

That work predates the interview. QNX announced an expanded Nvidia collaboration on April 20, integrating QNX OS for Safety 8.0 with IGX Thor and the Halos Safety Stack. The stated targets included robotics, medical technologies and industrial systems—regulated settings where the companies are pitching AI capabilities alongside safety-focused computing.

Robotics is one backlog driver, not the whole story

The larger backlog gives a financial backdrop to Giamatteo’s robotics pitch, but he identified three contributors to its growth.

• Automakers’ transition to more advanced computing systems.
• Expanded software offerings from QNX.
• Emerging demand for physical AI applications.