Tensor G5: Google unveils its first-ever 3 nm smartphone chip

Google has shown off its new Tensor G5 SoC for the Pixel 10 series. The chip has been leaked extensively, and based on what we've seen so far, it doesn't move the needle much. However, it is the first to be made on a cutting-edge TSMC 3 nm node. That alone should make it better in terms of power efficiency.

While Google has not officially listed any specs, a previous Geekbench listing suggested it would come with an eight-core CPU with one Cortex-X4 (3.78 GHz), five Cortex-A725 (3.05 GHz) and two Cortex-A520 efficiency cores (2.25 GHz) clusters. Google claims this offers up to a 34% performance uplift compared to the Tensor G4. Similarly, its TPU (Tensor Processing Unit) is advertised to be up to 60% faster.

Google has also not listed what GPU powers the Tensor G5, but it is widely believed to be the PowerVR DXT-48-1536 from Imagination Technologies. Hardware-level raytracing is said to be disabled. Once again, there are virtually no details about its innards, except for the fact that it comes with a Google Titan M2 security chip baked in.

Notably, the Tensor G5 is the first Google phone to support C2PA Content Credentials to counter the plethora of AI-generated slop out there. Additionally, it can run the company's Gemini Nano AI model locally, allowing for features such as Magic Cue, Voice Translate, and Call Notes with actions to run on-device, likely without an internet connection.