Samsung Electronics has secured its position in the smartphone industry for years; however, it currently appears like the company is facing certain difficulty in the semiconductor market. While the in-house Exynos 2500 will be released next year, Samsung loses the bid for the mass production of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 chipset and is now handed over to TSMC.
It’s unfortunate for Samsung, as for years, it has been the only largest producer of Qualcomm’s chipsets, but now when it entered into the competition to win the order of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 chips, it ultimately has to deal with a big blow, losing the bid.
As according to the recent reports (via Jukanlosreve), the industry has handed over the mass production of 8 Elite 2 processors to TSMC using its 3rd-generation 3nm (N3P) process. Alternatively, Samsung also eyed trying to reach a compromise with Qualcomm to win the key contract for the Snapdragon 8s Elite chips, but, unfortunately, failed to achieve the goal.
In spite of that, for four consecutive years, Samsung has aimed to diversify its foundry division by integrating its Galaxy devices with Qualcomm’s processors; however, it has failed to do so. Meanwhile, the possible reason is the Exynos 2500,which is built by using a 3nm process, though the upcoming Galaxy S25 series has already been revealed to be filled up with Snapdragon 8 Elite chips.
Nevertheless, further reports suggest that the other flagship models, including the Galaxy Z Flip 7 is rumoured to be the first Samsung’s book style unit to feature Exynos, and not the S series. Simultaneously, it will be a perception that Samsung foundry division could lead TSMC by manufacturing 2nm process-based chips early.
Therefore, Samsung will now be planning to target the order of Snapdragon 8 Elite 3 chips, being prepared for the second half of 2026 and will be based on a 2nm process.
