Galaxy S27 Ultra May Feature a Qualcomm-Only Chip, Sidestepping Exynos

The upcoming Exynos 2600 is expected to play a major role in Samsung’s Galaxy S26 lineup. Current expectations suggest that the Galaxy S26 Ultra will feature Qualcomm’s newest flagship processor, leaving the Exynos 2600 to power the rest of the lineup.

There has been growing speculation that Samsung might rely exclusively on Exynos chips for the Galaxy S27 series. However, the latest industry chatter suggests that the company could make an exception for the Galaxy S27 Ultra which is expected to be powered by a customized Qualcomm chipset.

Samsung May Potentially Manufacture This Chip for Qualcomm

A recent rumor originating from China suggests that the Galaxy S27 could be powered by a “custom ntuned” Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 Pro chipset. The report also claims that this processor would be produced using Samsung’s advanced 2nm manufacturing process. Even though the Galaxy S27 Ultra is not specifically mentioned, it stands to reason that Samsung would reserve this advanced hardware for its top tier Ultra model.

Qualcomm has not relied on Samsung to manufacture its flagship processors for quite some time, instead favoring other foundry partners. Recent reports suggest that Samsung Foundry is back in the conversation thanks to improving yields on its 2nm process. At the same time, persistent capacity shortages at TSMC are pushing customers like Qualcomm to seriously consider Samsung as the most viable manufacturing option available.

As for the claim about the chip being custom-tuned, it most likely points to the familiar “for Galaxy” branding Samsung has used in the past. Historically, these chips have offered slightly boosted CPU clock speeds when compared to the regular Snapdragon versions sold to other OEMs. Given that precedent, it’s reasonable to assume that this is the type of customization being implied.

The Galaxy S27 lineup remains far in the future and there is a significant chance that things could change before it officially arrives, so any rumors circulating at this point should be treated lightly.