Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 may have just launched, but the rumor cycle has already skipped ahead to 2026. According to well-known tipster Digital Chat Station, Qualcomm is internally preparing its next flagship mobile chips, the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 and Snapdragon 8 Gen 6.
The latest leak reveals the internal model codes for the SoCs: SM8975 for the 8 Elite Gen 6, and SM8950 for the standard 8 Gen 6. For comparison, this year’s 8 Elite Gen 5 and 8 Gen 5 carry the identifiers SM8850 and SM8845.
The chips are expected to be built on a next-generation 2nm process and will also carry forward Qualcomm’s new naming strategy for the Snapdragon 8 series chips.
That’s all we know about Gen 6 for now. In the meantime, the Gen 5 gives us a clue about where things are heading. Qualcomm’s latest chip is powered by its third-generation Oryon CPU, with a prime core running up to 4.6GHz.
The company claims a 20 percent performance boost and as much as 35 percent better efficiency compared to the previous generation.
The GPU also sees a 23 percent jump in graphics output and higher clock speeds for ray-traced gaming. On-device AI is handled by a faster Hexagon NPU promising 37 percent more throughput. For creators, the Spectra ISP and support for the Advanced Professional Video (APV) codec open the door to near-lossless 8K video recording.
Last but not least, Qualcomm uses a new X85 5G modem for connectivity. Xiaomi has already launched its 17 series phones with the chip, while OnePlus, Vivo, iQOO, Oppo, Realme, and Honor are all expected to ship devices powered by the new silicon by late 2025 and early 2026.
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