Qualcomm, on October 21, 2024, announced significant upgrades to its mobile phone chips for performing generative AI tasks. The world’s largest chip maker will use its laptop chip technology to bring significantly enhanced capabilities in smartphones.
The San Diego company has developed a new line of custom computing technology, branded "Oryon,". It will be used for the first time in mobile phone chips.
Oryon is a technology that Qualcomm had originally put into its laptop chips, designed by a team of former Apple engineers in 2021. It would enhance the Snapdragon 8 Elite chip capabilities for image or text generation.
Chris Patrick, Senior Vice President and General Manager for mobile handsets of Qualcomm said, "AI has been one of those where I think Google is moving fast, but we have our technology to offer that end developer."
Qualcomm intends to provide specialised tools to software developers beyond the ones available in Google's Android operating system.
Qualcomm has already secured partnerships with some of the leading manufacturers, including Samsung Electronics, Asustek Computer, and Xiaomi.
These smartphone giants will integrate the new Snapdragon 8 Elite chip into their subsequent releases. The collaboration is proof of Qualcomm's remarkable endeavours in device improvement for AI applications on mobile platforms.
Oryon will help consumers process complex AI tasks that were once strictly reserved for powerful computing devices. Qualcomm manages to set a strategic position with this move to ensure its continued global leadership.