Qualcomm has introduced two flagship smartphone processors designed to run more AI work on the device. Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 and its higher-end Extreme variant add a sensing hub that can continuously operate models with as many as 200 million parameters while using less power than the main processor.
That hub can support a local personal scribe, distinguish speakers and build memory from device activity for suggested automations. Qualcomm says the chips can run a complete voice-in, voice-out agent locally. Keeping those functions on the phone can reduce network delay and limit the data sent to cloud services, although actual privacy will depend on how handset makers implement their software.
The Extreme chip can also run a 30-billion-parameter mixture-of-experts model. This architecture stores a large collection of parameters but activates only a subset for each request, making local execution more practical. Qualcomm did not provide independent application benchmarks showing speed, battery use or sustained thermal performance for that workload.
Both processors also use AI for vocal enhancement, call-noise isolation and camera processing. Motorola announced a Signature 27 handset using the Extreme chip, with availability planned later this year. Other manufacturers, device prices and regional launch schedules were not detailed.