Pixel 6 Code Hints Google Is Already Working on a New Tensor Chip

The Pixel 6 and 6 Pro are simply now arriving on patrons’ doorsteps, and we’re already speaking about what’s subsequent for Google’s flagship Android lineup.

Evidence factors to a next-gen Tensor chip within the Pixel 7. According to 9to5Google, whose tear-apart staff tinkered with the apps constructed into the Pixel 6, there’s a transparent indicator {that a} second-generation TPU, or Tensor Processing Unit, is within the works.

The staff discovered distinct references to a brand new Pixel-related codename. It’s known as “Cloudripper,” although it’s not an alias for the subsequent Pixel mannequin. Instead, the staff believes it’s the title for the event board used to check {hardware} much like what’s contained in the Pixel 7 and seven Pro. The Pixel 6 and 6 Pro had their personal codename, “Slider.”

Cloudripper seems related to the second-gen model of Google Tensor, beneath the mannequin quantity “GS201.” It looks as if the apparent successor to the present era, contemplating the Pixel 6’s chip was known as “GS101.” Former XDA Developers editor-in-chief and famous tinkerer Mishaal Rahman additionally discovered a point out of GS201 in a teardown of the not too long ago revealed Android source code.

Cloudripper is referenced within the Pixel 6’s apps, which is why it appears “highly likely” that Google is already prepping for the subsequent smartphone. But it’s not instantly clear what we’re going to see from the arrival of this chip or what it is going to enhance.

It does appear to be too quickly to be speaking a couple of theoretical chip when those that bought the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro have but to obtain their new smartphones. Buyers are dealing with provide shortages and delays, with the Google Store warning patrons this week that there could also be “long delivery times.”

But on the very least this means that Google plans to construct on its present chip with a next-gen model. If you’re undecided whether or not to purchase a Pixel 6—in spite of everything, with new processors come new issues—then you may relaxation assured that Google can be attempting to win you over once more subsequent yr, or each time the Pixel 7 makes its debut.