Qualcomm has been a leader in providing powerful chipsets for the Android market, with many brands relying on their technology for flagship smartphones and tablets. The Snapdragon 8 Elite was previously seen as a significant advancement in their high-end system-on-chip (SoC) offerings. Recently, early performance benchmarks for its successor, the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 2, have become available. The official launch of the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 2 is anticipated in Q3 2025.

Expectations are high following the improvements in performance and energy efficiency that the Snapdragon 8 Elite delivered, largely due to the introduction of new custom “Oryon” cores. This innovation created some friction with Arm, the designer of the chip architecture, even leading to legal action. Recent leaks from reliable sources indicate that the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 2 may deliver impressive gains. The chip, with the model number SM8850, has reportedly scored 4,000 points in single-core and 13,000 in multi-core tests on Geekbench 6.

This suggests a 25% increase in single-core performance and a 20% improvement in multi-core tasks, signifying a substantial upgrade over its predecessor. Furthermore, the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 2 is expected to feature an Adreno 840 GPU that can reach speeds of up to 1.35GHz, a notable upgrade from the current Adreno 830 at 1.1GHz. While the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 2 will keep the Oryon cores and the advanced 3nm manufacturing process, the performance gains, although impressive, may not match the leap seen with the initial Snapdragon 8 Elite. Looking ahead, Qualcomm is reportedly preparing for a transition to 2nm technology in the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 3, set for release in 2026.

This evolution points towards continuous advancements in chip technology and performance for future devices.