The Exynos chips used in Google Tensor chipsets have been manufactured by Samsung since their inception. Next year, Google is expected to switch to TSMC’s process node for its Tensor G5. A new report published by Android Authority reveals what’s in store for Tensor G5 and G6 from Google’s gChips division.
TSMC’s 3nm-class N3E process will power Tensor G5 (codenamed “laguna”), which will power Pixel 10. At present, that’s the same process node used for Apple’s A18 Pro chip inside the iPhone 16 Pro series.
Tensor G5 will include a new CPU cluster with 1x Arm Cortex-X4 prime core, 5x Cortex-A725 performance cores, and 2x Arm Cortex-A520 efficiency units. The GPU will also be upgraded to a dual-core, 1.1GHz Imagination Technologies (IMG) DXT-48-1536 unit.
Tensor G5’s new GPU unit supports ray tracing – a first for Tensor chipsets – and offers GPU Virtualization to accelerate graphics in virtual machines. A new NPU will also improve AI tasks by 14% for Google.
TSMC’s upcoming N3P node is expected to produce Tensor G6 (codenamed “malibu”). Although it is still a 3nm process, it offers significant improvements in performance, power efficiency, and size. N3P will offer a 5% jump in frequency compared to N3E, while drawing 7% less power and taking up 4% less space.
