Qualcomm’s upcoming Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 mobile processor is expected to usher in a new era of performance with 2-nanometer manufacturing and advanced components, according to industry speculation, though these innovations could also drive up flagship smartphone prices.
A prominent Chinese tipster, known as Digital Chat Station on the social media platform Weibo, revealed that the high-end chipset is anticipated to launch in September 2026. This new generation is projected to leverage a 2-nanometer production process by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC).
This technological leap is expected to deliver higher processing speeds and improved power efficiency compared to its predecessor, the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. Samsung is also reportedly developing its own 2-nanometer flagship, the Exynos 2600.
The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 is rumored to integrate LPDDR6 RAM, which could offer speeds between 10.6 and 14.4 Gbps. This marks a significant upgrade from the LPDDR5 RAM found in current devices, which operates at 6.4 Gbps.
Furthermore, the new chip is expected to support UFS 5.0 storage. This advanced storage technology boasts read and write speeds up to 10.8 GB per second, a substantial increase from the 4.2 GB per second offered by UFS 4.0.
These advanced components and manufacturing processes are likely to increase the cost of the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6. This could translate into higher retail prices for flagship smartphones released by various brands in 2026.
Qualcomm recently launched its current flagship, the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, in late September 2025. That chipset is built on a 3-nanometer process and features an 8-core, third-generation Oryon CPU with a maximum processing speed of 4.60 GHz.
The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 powered several high-end Android smartphones, including models such as the Xiaomi 17 series, Honor Magic 8 Pro, and iQOO 15. The Gen 5 represented a notable improvement over the Snapdragon 8 Elite (Gen 4), which debuted in September 2024 with a top speed of 4.32 GHz.