Forget apps: Qualcomm CEO says AI agents will change how we use smartphones
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Forget apps: Qualcomm CEO says AI agents will change how we use smartphones")
Qualcomm unveils new Snapdragon chips as CEO bets on AI agents taking over phones
Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon says smartphones are moving from an app-centric era to an “agentic” one, where AI can understand context and act on users’ behalf. The company has unveiled two new Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 chips designed for this on-device AI future.
The smartphone may be about to change its job. Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon believes the next major shift in mobile technology will move smartphones away from simply running apps and towards AI agents that understand what users want and act for them. Speaking at Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Summit in Maui, Hawaii, Amon said the industry is moving from an app-centric model to an “agentic” one. In this future, AI could understand a user's intent, remember context, plan tasks and take action with permission. Qualcomm unveiled the Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 and Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 on September 22 as the hardware foundation for that vision.
Why Qualcomm thinks the phone will remain important
Amon's argument is that AI agents will not make smartphones irrelevant.
Quite the opposite. “The phone is not going to go anywhere,” he said, arguing that a smartphone is uniquely personal because it is usually with its owner, carries personal information and is customised around the individual.
That could turn the phone into the central hub for personal AI.
Instead of opening an app, finding a feature and giving it instructions, a user could eventually tell an agent what they want and let it work across apps and devices. But Qualcomm says trust will be essential. Amon stressed that AI agents must be secure, private and keep users in control.
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New Snapdragon chips built for AI agents
Qualcomm's new flagship chips are designed to push more AI processing directly onto smartphones. Both platforms use Qualcomm's Oryon CPU, Adreno GPU and Hexagon NPU, with the company highlighting on-device AI capabilities. The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 can support personalised agents that anticipate and act on a user's behalf, while Qualcomm says the Extreme version is its most powerful mobile platform.
The standard Gen 6 features two Prime CPU cores reaching up to 5GHz, alongside six Performance cores. Qualcomm also says its new AI engine can deliver up to 20% better performance per watt for agentic AI workloads compared with the previous generation.
The bigger battle is happening on the device
The shift matters because running AI directly on a phone can reduce dependence on cloud servers and allow some tasks to happen locally. Qualcomm says its vision extends beyond smartphones to PCs, cars, earbuds, glasses and other personal devices, creating an ecosystem where an AI agent can move between devices. That is the bigger bet behind the new chips. The smartphone is not disappearing. Qualcomm wants it to become the place where your personal AI knows you, understands your context and with your permission gets things done.
