25 September 2026 — Qualcomm announced the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 and Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 on 22 September, offering phone makers two premium chips built around on-device AI. The Extreme version can run a 30-billion-parameter mixture-of-experts model locally, TechCrunch reported. That capacity arrives as memory costs push up handset prices and the number of smartphones shipped is expected to fall.
Key points
- Qualcomm introduced standard and Extreme versions of its Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 platform.
- The Extreme chip can run a 30-billion-parameter mixture-of-experts model on the phone.
- Both chips have a sensing hub for local models of up to 200 million parameters.
- Counterpoint Research expects smartphone shipments to fall 14% in 2026.
Extreme Gen 6 and its 30-billion-parameter model
The 30-billion figure describes the size of the model the Extreme chip can run, rather than the amount of the model used on every request. In a mixture-of-experts model, a task calls on only some of its parameters — more like opening the drawers needed for a job than emptying an entire cabinet. The selective activation applies to the larger local-model capability identified with the Extreme version.
Qualcomm says the standard Gen 6 uses its custom Oryon central processor, a redesigned Adreno graphics processor and a Hexagon neural processor. Both chipsets have a CPU, GPU and NPU for AI workloads. CNBC reported that both chips use TSMC’s 2-nanometre manufacturing process. The standard Gen 6 has an additional accelerator intended to run models more efficiently, while Qualcomm says it brings many of the Extreme version’s AI, imaging and gaming features to another tier of premium phones.
The two versions give phone makers a choice of where to place local AI capability in their ranges. For software built to run on both, the distinction is concrete: CNBC reported that both platforms have central, graphics and neural processors. TechCrunch reported that the capacity to run the 30-billion-parameter model belongs to Extreme. A feature designed around that larger model would therefore depend on which chip a handset uses.
Qualcomm’s sensing hub handles smaller models
Both chips also have a sensing hub that can run models of up to 200 million parameters on the device, TechCrunch reported. Qualcomm says the hub can help a phone tell speakers apart, keep a personal scribe locally and build a memory from usage to improve suggestions for automating tasks. These are smaller, continuing jobs than running the model supported by Extreme, and the hub gives them a place on the phone’s hardware.
Taking notes during a conversation could involve separating voices on the handset instead of sending that processing to the cloud.
Qualcomm also said the new chips could support an agent that takes spoken input and gives spoken replies. CNBC reported that the platforms add security controls over an agent’s access to sensitive data, alongside processors intended to handle AI work in the background. Those controls matter to the kind of personalised service Qualcomm is proposing: an agent using information from a phone would need access to that information to act on it.
At the launch, chief executive Cristiano Amon described a shift from a phone-centred experience towards one organised around agents completing tasks. Qualcomm says the sensing hub can distinguish speakers. TechCrunch reported that the Extreme chip can run a larger model locally. The hardware places those jobs on the device rather than requiring every request to be processed remotely.
Counterpoint projects a 14% shipment fall
The commercial setting for the launch is difficult. Counterpoint Research expects worldwide smartphone shipments to decline 14% in 2026, with a further 1% fall possible in 2027, CNBC reported. Higher memory costs have raised finished-phone prices, and handset companies have been placing more emphasis on premium models. Qualcomm is pitching those models as places to run AI work locally.
Qualcomm’s handset-chip revenue fell 20% year on year to $5.1 billion in its fiscal third quarter, Quartz reported. Amon linked weaker affordability to memory prices and said some customers were choosing less expensive premium phones or keeping older devices. Qualcomm also said it would increase its chip prices from 1 September to offset higher manufacturing input costs.
Qualcomm named HONOR, iQOO, Motorola, OnePlus, OPPO, REDMI, RedMagic, vivo and Xiaomi among the brands expected to use the new platforms. Its release also describes camera features for the Extreme chip, including Advanced Professional Video support and pixel-level controls. The pitch to those manufacturers thus extends beyond AI: the two-chip range offers a choice of premium phone features while the overall market is expected to contract.
Motorola announced its Signature 27 phone with the Extreme chip at the launch event. Motorola expects the handset to become generally available by the end of 2026, TechCrunch reported.
