Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 is the top-tier chip in Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 series, announced September 22, 2026 and now shipping in the Xiaomi 18 Pro Max, which launched in Beijing on September 23. Global release timing for the Xiaomi phones that carry it is undecided, and no Japan release has been announced.
Qualcomm announced two chips on September 22, 2026: the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 and the Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6. Both are built on the first 2nm process and organized around AI processing that runs on the phone itself. The CPU reaches 5GHz and the GPU carries a core dedicated to AI work. The Extreme model adds gaming rendering and video shooting features beyond the base chip. Qualcomm named the Xiaomi 18 Pro and new Motorola models as devices that will use the silicon.
The following day, Xiaomi held a launch event in Beijing and announced the Xiaomi 18 Pro and Xiaomi 18 Pro Max. Both use the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 series. The Pro Max is the first device with the Extreme Gen 6, according to the launch coverage. It has a 6.9-inch display, an 8500mAh battery, and dual 200-megapixel cameras, plus a 200-megapixel 3.2x telephoto and a 50-megapixel ultra-wide. Pricing starts at 6999 yuan for the 12GB + 256GB model. The Xiaomi 18 Pro starts at 5999 yuan with a 6.4-inch screen and a 7000mAh battery.
The benchmark picture is split. A reference model's AnTuTu run topped 5.6 million, against about 3.4 million measured on an iPhone 18 Pro Max, so the Qualcomm chip is ahead on that metric. Apple's A20 Pro still leads on the Geekbench single-core and Metal GPU tests. A translucent red special edition was also announced, with both models limited to 16GB memory and 1TB storage. The Pro special edition costs 9999 yuan, and the Pro Max special edition costs 10,999 yuan. Global release timing is undecided, and no Japan release has been announced.
Written with AI from the cited Yomimono stories below, each itself sourced.
See our editorial policy. Every fact links
the story it came from.
Oct 3
Xiaomi held a launch event in Beijing on September 23, where it announced the Xiaomi 18 Pro and Xiaomi 18 Pro Max. Both phones use Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 series, announced the same day at the Snapdragon Summit in Hawaii. The Pro Max is the first device with the Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6, according to the launch coverage. The Pro Max has a 6.9-inch display, 8500mAh battery, and dual 200-megapixel cameras, with a 200-megapixel 3.2x telephoto and a 50-megapixel ultra-wide. Pricing starts at 6999 yuan for the 12GB + 256GB Pro Max. The Xiaomi 18 Pro starts at 5999 yuan with a 6.4-inch screen and a 7000mAh battery. A translucent red special edition was also announced, with both models limited to 16GB memory and 1TB storage. The Pro special edition costs 9999 yuan, and the Pro Max special edition costs 10,999 yuan. Global release timing is undecided, and no Japan release has been announced.
Sep 24
Qualcomm announced two top-tier smartphone chips on September 22, 2026: the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 and the Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6. Both are built on the first 2nm process and are designed around AI processing that runs on the phone itself. The CPU reaches 5GHz, and the GPU carries a core dedicated to AI work. The Extreme model adds further gaming rendering and video shooting features beyond the base chip. Qualcomm also disclosed adoption plans, naming the Xiaomi 18 Pro and new Motorola models as devices that will use the silicon. The two chips sit at the top of Qualcomm's smartphone lineup for the coming cycle, with the AI agent framed as the phone's lead function rather than a background utility.