Exynos 2600 vs Apple M5? Alleged Geekbench Leak Teases a 2nm Turning Point for Galaxy S26

It sounds unbelievable at first blush, but the rumor mill is loud: Samsung’s next flagship application processor, the Exynos 2600, is reportedly turning in performance numbers that brush up against Apple’s M5 in single-core tests. If those figures hold, the Galaxy maker wouldn’t just be catching up – it would be rewriting the Android silicon narrative. And it would be doing so on the back of a bold manufacturing swing: a 2nm process using Gate-All-Around (GAA) transistors from Samsung Foundry.

Context matters. The Exynos 2600 is expected to power the Galaxy S26 and S26+ in many regions, with persistent whispers that even the Galaxy S26 Ultra in Europe and South Korea could carry Exynos silicon. That last part would have been a punchline a few years ago; today it reads like quiet confidence from a company convinced its design and manufacturing have turned a corner.

What the Geekbench chatter says – and why we should be cautious

A well-circulated screenshot – shared by leaker accounts – claims Geekbench 6 scores of 4,217 (single-core) and 13,482 (multi-core) for the Exynos 2600, topping an earlier leak of 3,455 / 11,621. On paper, the single-core number would be in the neighborhood of an Apple M5 figure and would represent the fastest single-core score ever associated with a smartphone-class SoC. But there’s a necessary asterisk: those numbers do not currently appear in Geekbench’s public database. That leaves three possibilities – pulled results, fabricated results, or a test that never formally landed in the listings. Treat them as unverified until proven.

Even with that caveat, the reported scores are a big deal because they would outpace the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 (for Galaxy) leak of roughly 2,865 single-core and 9,487 multi-core. A decisive win there would signal a dramatic performance and efficiency inflection for Exynos – and a reputational reset for Samsung Foundry’s cutting-edge node.

Why 2nm GAA is a genuine leap, not just a smaller number

Samsung’s 2nm node introduces GAA nanosheet transistors, which wrap the gate on all sides of the channel. Compared to classic FinFET designs, GAA better tames current leakage and increases drive current at a given voltage. In practice that can mean higher peak clocks at similar power, or similar performance at much lower power – critical for phones where battery life, thermals, and sustained performance matter as much as short bursts. If the Exynos 2600’s scores are real, GAA is doing exactly what it says on the tin.

Inside the CPU: a 10-core layout built for headroom

Architecture rumors point to a deca-core CPU using a 1 + 3 + 6 cluster. The alleged Prime core hits 4.20GHz, three performance cores at 3.56GHz, and six efficiency cores at 2.76GHz. That mix aims to deliver chart-topping single-thread snap while scaling gracefully to multi-thread workloads – video edits, rapid-fire photo pipelines, and the growing number of on-device AI tasks. Pair that with a modern GPU, ISP, and NPU stack and you’re looking at tangible user-facing wins: faster night photography, smarter background tasks, and lower heat during long gaming sessions.

Distribution strategy: Snapdragon where it must, Exynos where it can

Historically, Samsung has split modem and SoC sourcing by region. The current chatter suggests all S26 models in the U.S., China, and Japan could use Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy, while Exynos 2600 would dominate elsewhere – and potentially grace the Ultra in Europe and South Korea. That’s not just logistics; it’s signaling. Putting Exynos in the Ultra in Exynos-friendly markets would be Samsung publicly betting on its own silicon at the very top of its range.

From yield headaches to a foundry renaissance?

Only a year ago, Samsung reportedly had to spend an additional $400 million to buy extra Snapdragon chips after low yields made the Exynos 2500 a tough fit for the Galaxy S25 duo in most regions. Those stumbles also fueled a broader narrative: Qualcomm yanked Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 production from Samsung to TSMC, then released the efficiency-improved 8+ Gen 1 from Taiwan. Since then, Qualcomm’s flagships have stayed with TSMC. Market-share snapshots underscored the gap: TSMC towering at around 70% of the foundry market versus Samsung’s high single digits. If the Exynos 2600 on 2nm arrives with strong yields and real-world wins, it won’t just help Samsung Mobile – it would be a statement that Samsung Foundry can compete at the sharpest edge again.

How close is it to Apple’s M5 – really?

Perspective helps. The whispered Exynos single-core result would be near an Apple M5 single-core score (around 4,263), essentially a rounding-error difference of about one percent. Multi-core is a different story: reported M5 multi-core is around 17,862, roughly 32% higher than the Exynos 2600’s alleged 13,482. That’s not a knock on Exynos; Apple’s M-series chips are designed for wider power envelopes and larger core complexes. If a phone-class Exynos can nip at an M-class core’s single-thread heels, that’s a watershed moment for mobile silicon.

Benchmarks are not the product

Numbers excite, but devices win the day. OEM thermal design, scheduler tuning, memory bandwidth, storage speed, modem efficiency, and camera pipelines turn silicon into experiences. A phone that doesn’t throttle during a 20-minute 4K capture; an ISP that nails difficult HDR scenes; an NPU that powers live transcriptions without draining the battery – those are where users feel the difference. The Exynos 2600’s rumored gains, if real, should translate into longer sustained performance, smoother AI features, and better per-watt behavior in daily use.

Lessons from the Mongoose era

It’s easy to forget how far Exynos has traveled. Samsung shut its custom Mongoose CPU design team around 2019–2020 after chips repeatedly trailed Snapdragon in both speed and efficiency. The company pivoted, aligned more tightly with ARM’s CPU designs, and focused on process improvements. The alleged 2600 results – again, pending verification – suggest that strategy plus 2nm GAA may finally be paying off. Being mentioned in the same breath as an M-class single-core score would have sounded like satire half a decade ago; today it sounds plausible.

If it all pans out, what it means for you

For buyers, a competitive Exynos means more choice and potentially lower costs for Samsung, which could reinvest savings into cameras, displays, or longer software support windows. For the industry, it invites healthy rivalry at the node frontier and gives Android OEMs leverage in future sourcing deals. For developers and creators, higher single-core speeds shorten compile times and speed through photo edits, while richer NPUs open the door to more on-device AI so data stays private and latency stays low.

Reality check: where we stand today

Until the listings are public and retail hardware ships, the Exynos 2600’s performance story is still written in pencil. Early samples can be over- or under-representative, scheduler builds evolve, and shipping firmware always differs from lab runs. But this much is clear: Samsung is aiming to make the Galaxy S26 family the first mainstream phones built on a 2nm GAA node, and the rumor-book numbers – if they survive daylight – would mark the biggest Exynos leap in years. That alone makes the next few months some of the most intriguing in mobile silicon since the first big-little breakthroughs.