Samsung Unveils Galaxy S26 Series: The Most Intuitive Galaxy AI Phone Yet

Manal Saleh

With powerful hardware working together with an industry-leading camera system and intuitive AI experiences, everyday tasks have never been easier and faster

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. today announced the Galaxy S26 series, powered by the most intuitive, proactive and adaptive Galaxy AI experiences yet and designed to simplify the tasks people do on their phones every day. From managing plans and finding information to capturing and refining content, Galaxy S26 reduces the effort and number of steps required to get things done. As Samsung’s third-generation AI phones, Galaxy S26, S26+ and S26 Ultra handle complex tasks in the background, allowing users to focus on results rather than how the technology works.

The Galaxy S26 series was engineered with Samsung’s most advanced capabilities working together as one: incredible performance, an industry-leading camera system and Galaxy AI. This provides a strong foundation that gives Galaxy S26 users the confidence to depend on their phone throughout the day without compromising security or privacy.

Building on Samsung's decades of innovation in display technology, Galaxy S26 Ultra introduces the world's first built-in Privacy Display for mobile phones to unlock a new class of display experiences and reinforce Samsung's commitment to privacy at a pixel level. Galaxy S26 Ultra also delivers a customized chipset and upgraded thermal management that enable faster and more powerful AI — all wrapped up in the slimmest Ultra yet.

Together, these choices allow the Galaxy S26 series to deliver the most powerful Galaxy experience yet.

“We believe AI should be something people can depend on every day, designed to work consistently for everyone and without the need for expertise,” said TM Roh, Chief Executive Officer, President, and Head of Device eXperience (DX) Division at Samsung Electronics. “With the Galaxy S26 series, we focused on making AI feel effortless, working quietly in the background so people can focus on what matters.”

[Powerful Performance Designed Around Everyday Use]

Engineered for all-day performance, the Galaxy S26 series is built on the most powerful hardware ever on a Galaxy S series, powered by a customized chipset. Across the line-up, the Galaxy S26 series is engineered for AI performance, power efficiency and thermal management, ensuring demanding tasks run smoothly and consistently, so users can rely on their device when it matters.

On Galaxy S26 Ultra, a customized mobile processor — Snapdragon® 8 Elite Gen 5 Mobile Platform for Galaxy — delivers the best performance ever in its class with significant gains across CPU, GPU, and NPU to support faster, smoother experiences that keep up throughout the day.

A CPU performance increase of up to 19% means Galaxy S26 Ultra responds more quickly and handles complex workloads intelligently, even when multiple tasks are running at once. A 39% improvement in NPU performance powers always-on Galaxy AI features that run seamlessly, allowing users to move between tasks without lag or interruption. A 24% boost in GPU performance delivers richer visuals and more fluid gameplay.

To sustain this level of performance, Galaxy S26 Ultra introduces a redesigned Vapor Chamber with thermal interface material positioned along the sides of the processor, allowing heat to spread more efficiently across a larger surface area. This improves heat dissipation to keep the device cool and consistent, even during demanding activities such as gaming, multitasking and video capture. To support all-day use, Galaxy S26 Ultra also brings Super Fast Charging 3.0, minimizing downtime by reaching up to 75% charge in just 30 minutes.

Embedded into the processor, Samsung’s proprietary technologies enhance visual performance. ProScaler improves image scaling so photos and videos appear richer and clearer at a glance by sharpening text and fine detail while smoothing textures. Additionally, Samsung’s mobile Digital Natural Image engine (mDNIe) delivers more subtle and lifelike colors thanks to image processing with four times the precision compared to the previous generation.

Taken together, these advancements deliver dependable all-day performance, making every action feel effortless.

[Galaxy’s Industry-Leading Camera System]

The Galaxy S26 series brings the same focus on intuitive interaction to creativity and productivity, delivered through the industry-leading Galaxy camera system. With an approach that integrates capturing stunning photos and videos, editing and sharing into a single, seamless experience, creativity feels more natural and accessible even without professional tools or technical knowledge.

On Galaxy S26 Ultra, wider camera apertures allow more light to reach the sensor, delivering clearer photos with richer details in low-light conditions, even when zoomed in. Enhanced Nightography Video keeps footage clearer and more vibrant even in dim scenes, whether capturing concerts indoors or recording moments around a campfire after sunset. Video capture is further enhanced with upgraded Super Steady capabilities, which add a horizontal lock option for greater stability and to make consistent framing easier to achieve, even with bumpy trails or fast-paced activities. Galaxy S26 Ultra is the first Galaxy device to support APV, a new professional-grade video codec designed to deliver efficient compression for high-quality production workflows. Optimized for advanced creators, it ensures visually lossless video quality that stays true even after repeated editing.

Improvements to the AI ISP now extend to the selfie camera, capturing more natural skin tones and finer detail in mixed lighting.

Editing photos and videos is just as easy and straightforward, with AI-powered tools built into familiar workflows so users can make changes quickly and unlock their creativity without design expertise.

With the upgraded Photo Assist suite, users can simply describe what they want to change in their own words. Changing the scene from day to night is just a matter of asking. It can also add to images and restore missing parts of objects like a bite taken out of a cake. Personal details, such as a spill on clothing, can also be cleaned up with Galaxy AI’s new ability to change outfits in photos. Edits can now be made continuously, reviewed step by step, and easily adjusted or undone along the way, making the process feel fluid rather than final.

Creative Studio builds on this simplicity by bringing creation and customization into one integrated space, making it easy to act on ideas when inspiration strikes. Starting from a sketch, photo or prompt, users can quickly turn ideas into polished visuals — from stickers and invitations to personalized wallpapers — and refine or share them without switching tools or interrupting creative flow.

The Galaxy S26 series also simplifies frequent visual tasks with AI-powered tools like the Document Scan, which removes distortions and distractions such as creases or fingers to deliver clean scans instantly. Multiple images can be organized automatically into a single PDF, making it easy to digitize receipts, forms or notes.

[The Most Intuitive Galaxy AI Experience Yet]

The Galaxy S26 series is designed to make frequently used experiences feel straightforward and user-friendly, with Galaxy AI reducing the steps between intent and action. It works more proactively and seamlessly on the user’s behalf based on context, surfacing the right support at the right moment and automating tasks with minimal manual input. As the technology fades and handles tasks in the background, users can focus on the results.

With Now Nudge, timely and relevant suggestions help users stay in the flow without being distracted. If a friend asks for photos from a recent trip, Galaxy S26 automatically suggests photos from the Gallery, removing the need to search through albums or switch between apps. When receiving a message about a meeting, Galaxy S26 can recognize related Calendar entries and check for conflicts.

On the Galaxy S26 series, Now Brief has become more proactive and personalized. It surfaces timely reminders for important events – from reservations to travel updates – based on personal context, helping users stay organized throughout the day.

Searching for information is also easier than ever. Circle to Search with Google on the Galaxy S26 series has been upgraded with enhanced multi-object recognition, so users can now explore more deeply on multiple parts of an image at once. If users spot a look they love, the feature also identifies everything from the jacket to the shoes, all in one search.

Galaxy S26 series features an upgraded Bixby as a conversational device agent, making it more intuitive and easier than ever to interact with Galaxy devices. Users can navigate their devices and adjust settings using natural language, without the need for exact terminology or commands.

Alongside Bixby, Galaxy S26 series integrates a choice of agents, including Gemini and Perplexity. Once set up, tasks can be completed with a single button press or voice prompt. Galaxy S26 can also handle multi-step tasks in the background, streamlining the process on the user’s behalf. For example, with Gemini, booking a taxi is as simple as asking, reviewing the details and tapping confirm. These agents support tasks such as searching and carrying out complex tasks seamlessly across apps through natural interaction.

Together, these proactive, personalized and adaptive experiences lay the foundation for more agentic AI experiences — setting the stage for Galaxy devices to become trusted companions that understand and anticipate user needs.

[Layers of Protection in the Age of AI]

As mobile experiences become more personalized thanks to AI, protecting user privacy becomes even more critical. Samsung builds protection into every layer of Galaxy S26, keeping personal data secure while giving users transparency and control over how their information is used.

Galaxy S26 Ultra introduces privacy at the pixel level with the mobile industry’s first built-in Privacy Display, a breakthrough in display technology that fundamentally changes how privacy can be protected on a phone. Designed for everyday situations like transit, cafés and shared environments, Privacy Display goes beyond anything previously available on mobile devices — hardware and software working as one to protect privacy without compromising the viewing experience.

By controlling how pixels disperse light, the display keeps content clear, bright and comfortable for the user in everyday use, while limiting what others can see. Unlike traditional stick-on privacy films, Galaxy’s integrated Privacy Display preserves full viewing quality from all directions when off, and limits visibility for others from side viewing angles when activated, even when switching between portrait and landscape orientation.

Users can customize when it turns on — such as when entering PINs, patterns and passwords or opening selected apps — and adjust privacy levels depending on the situation. Partial Screen Privacy intelligently limits visibility for notification pop-ups, while Maximum Privacy Protection further obscures side views for added discretion, all with minimal impact on power or usability.

The Galaxy S26 series also brings smarter software safeguards that work quietly in the background. AI-powered Call Screening identifies unknown callers and summarizes intent, making it easier to safely manage calls. Privacy Alerts use machine learning to proactively notify users in real time when apps with device admin privileges unnecessarily attempt to access sensitive data, such as precise location, call logs or contacts. These alerts help users quickly understand when apps are seeking deeper access, so they can manage permissions with greater clarity and control.

Private Album, built directly into Gallery, lets users easily hide selected photos and videos without creating a separate folder or signing into a Samsung Account. To stay ahead of emerging threats, Galaxy S26 also extends Samsung’s innovation in post-quantum cryptography (PQC) to critical system processes, including software verification and firmware protection, strengthening device integrity for the future.

New updates to Knox Matrix further strengthen protection across connected Galaxy devices, adding PQC-enabled end-to-end encryption for more services such as eSIM transfers and clearer visibility into firmware update status across the ecosystem through Security Status of Your Devices.

These experiences are supported by Samsung Knox, the multi-layer security platform that protects Galaxy devices from the chip level up. For on-device Galaxy AI, Personal Data Engine (PDE) enables context-aware, personalized AI experiences. To keep this process safe, Knox Enhanced Encrypted Protection (KEEP) encrypts each app’s data, while Knox Vault adds a physical layer of protection that isolates sensitive data inside its own secure hardware. Together with settings that let users choose how AI features operate, Galaxy S26 combines hardware and software to deliver a comprehensive, system-wide approach designed to keep personal data protected.

These updates build on Galaxy’s existing security and privacy portfolio which includes Auto Blocker, Theft Protection, Private Sharing, Secure Wi-Fi and more. These layers of protection are designed to give users greater transparency, choice and control through Samsung’s continued mobile security innovation in the age of AI. And with seven years of security updates, Galaxy S26 helps keep these layers resilient over time — supporting longer, more confident use well into the years ahead.

Galaxy S26’s ease of use continues even when the phone is out of reach. The new Galaxy Buds4 series is a natural companion to Galaxy S26, extending everyday experiences beyond the phone while delivering rich and immersive hi-fi sound. When Galaxy S26 is paired with Galaxy Buds4, interactions can continue naturally in moments when using hands isn’t practical. Users can activate AI agents with their voices, manage calls through simple Head Gestures on Buds4 Pro, and stay connected without breaking their flow.

Availability

Galaxy S26 Ultra, S26+ and S26 will be available for pre-order starting from February 25. The Galaxy S26 series features a unified design language across all models, with shared color options including Cobalt Violet, White, Black and Sky Blue alongside the Samsung.com-exclusive Pink Gold and Silver Shadow.

For added peace of mind, Samsung Care+ offers comprehensive coverage optimized to users' device needs, including fast repairs for accidental damage, extended warranty, and certified expert support available both at home and abroad. This ensures a seamless mobile lifestyle and provides lasting protection that safeguards the value of Galaxy devices.