The push for smarter AI extends beyond phones, laptops and other personal computing devices. Cars are getting smarter, too, and the latest entry into Qualcomm's Digital Chasis line of chips for connected cars and smart cars looks to speed up that process.
Qualcomm unveiled two new automotive-geared chips today (October 22) — the Snapdragon Cockpit Elite and Snapdragon Ride Elite. The former system-on-chip controls digital experiences within the car itself — think climate control, infotainment, navigation and other features you'd expect to have in a connected vehicle. Meanwhile, Snapdragon Ride Elite is built to support autonomous driving. While these are two separate chips, Qualcomm has built them so that automakers can combine the two into a single system-on-chip — ideal for cars with self-driving features.
Like the Snapdragon 8 Elite mobile processor introduced for smartphones earlier this week, both the Cockpit Elite and Ride Elite chipsets now use Qualcomm's custom-built Oryon CPU. That should result in a 3x boost to performance over the previous generation of Qualcomm's automotive chips. The performance improvements means you'll be able to stream music in your car, run navigational software and field hands-free cars all at once without any dip in performance.
The Hexagon neural processing unit in Qualcomm's automotive chips is getting a boost, too — it's 12x faster than the previous generation, Qualcomm says. That will translate to more personalized assistance for drivers and passengers alike, with the AI features able to perform tasks like managing climate control based on your preferences or detecting where there's parking.
Ultimately, a lot of the neural engine features appear geared to supporting autonomous driving, particularly with the Snapdragon Ride Elite chip. Those features include real-time driver monitoring and enhanced object detection.
The Oryon CPU and neural engine improvements highlight the changes to Snapdragon's new Elite chips for automotive, but they're not the only improvements. The chipsets benefit from an enhanced image signal processor that promises better visuals even in bad weather. Forty multimodal sensors and 20 high-resolution camera sensors provide 360-degree monitoring, which includes the interior of the car.
Qualcomm says the chips are configurable so that car makers can use them in different tiers of vehicles. That flexible architecture should also speed up deployment, according to Qualcomm, so that you and I can enjoy new innovations to our rides faster than ever before.
You will have to wait until you get to experience any cars that benefit from the improvements to the Snapdragon Cockpit Elite and Ride Elite chips. Qualcomm plans to make the chips available for sampling in 2025.
I'm attending the Snapdragon Summit this week as a guest of Qualcomm, and I'm hoping for hands-on opportunities that will demonstrate the benefits of the new Snapdragon Cockpit Elite and Ride Elite chips for drivers and passengers. Stick with Tom's Guide for additional updates.
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