Qualcomm's next flagship chip is Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5
What's the story
Qualcomm has officially confirmed the name of its next flagship mobile chipset, the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. The announcement comes just ahead of the 2025 Snapdragon Summit, where Qualcomm will unveil the processor that will power the next generation of premium Android flagship phones. The new naming convention, which began with the introduction of the "Elite" moniker last year, reflects performance capabilities.
Naming strategy
New naming convention for SoCs
Qualcomm has clarified its new naming convention for chipsets, saying it marks the fifth generation of its premium 8-series platforms. The company said, "By aligning with Gen 5, we're reinforcing its leadership position and simplifying how consumers understand our product roadmap." The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 will succeed last year's Snapdragon 8 Elite SoC. Previous generations include Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, and Snapdragon 8 Gen 1.
Device integration
Xiaomi, Samsung to use Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5
Xiaomi has confirmed that its upcoming models, the Xiaomi 17, 17 Pro, and 17 Pro Max, will be powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. The processor will also be used in Samsung's Galaxy S26 series. More details about the performance and features of this new chipset are expected at the upcoming Snapdragon Summit. The three-day event will commence on September 23.
Rumored upgrades
It may be built on TSMC's 3nm N3P process
A recent leak suggests that the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5, previously rumored to be the Snapdragon 8 Elite 2, may be built on TSMC's 3nm N3P process and feature Qualcomm's custom Oryon CPU architecture with support for ARM's Scalable Matrix Extensions (SME). The chip is expected to deliver up to 20% better single- and multi-core performance, with SME enabling faster execution of artificial intelligence and machine learning tasks.