Forum Discussion
Snapdragon AI Studio – Native Local AI Image Generation for Windows 11 ARM64
Hi everyone,
I'd like to introduce Snapdragon AI Studio, an open-source desktop application I'm developing for native local AI image generation on Windows 11 ARM64, with a focus on Snapdragon X Elite and X Plus systems.
The project explores how generative AI workloads can run locally on Windows on Snapdragon while keeping the workflow on-device.
Current focus:
⚡ Phoenix Engine
🧠 Local AI inference
🔷 ONNX Runtime
🔥 Qualcomm QNN / NPU development
🎨 Stable Diffusion and ControlNet workflows
🖥️ Native Windows 11 ARM64
RC1 is publicly available, and development toward RC2 is continuing with a focus on image quality, performance and native Snapdragon acceleration.
The project is open source, and feedback, testing and contributions from Windows on Arm users and developers are very welcome.
GitHub:
https://github.com/Kreuzhofen/snapdragon-ai-studio
— Holger Kreuzhofen
Founder & Lead Developer, Snapdragon AI Studio / Phoenix Engine
7 Replies
Quick update: Snapdragon AI Studio – Phoenix Engine 2.0 RC2 is now available.
Since my original post, I’ve put a lot of work into the first-run experience and model setup. RC2 also brings validated Stable Diffusion 1.5 and 2.1 workflows, a new Stable Diffusion 3.5 workflow using Qualcomm QAI AppBuilder, improved QNN/NPU integration, and further work on ControlNet and Phoenix Boost.
The main goal is still the same: make local AI image generation on Windows on Snapdragon easier to install and use without having to deal with all the technical details behind the models and runtimes.
Feedback and testing are very welcome.
RC2:
https://github.com/Kreuzhofen/snapdragon-ai-studio/releases/tag/v2.0.0-rc.2
Holger Kreuzhofen
Founder & Lead Developer
Snapdragon AI Studio – Phoenix Engine
Snapdragon AI Studio – Phoenix Engine is an independent open-source project and is not an official Qualcomm product.
If you have experience with C++, Python, ONNX Runtime, or Qualcomm's QNN SDK, your pull requests are welcome. The developer has identified key focus areas for RC2, including image quality and performance.
Thanks, Sallop. I appreciate you pointing this out. Contributions are definitely welcome, especially around performance, image quality and the QNN/NPU side of the project. RC2 has moved quite a bit forward since the original post, but there is still plenty to explore and improve.
Holger Kreuzhofen
Founder & Lead Developer
Snapdragon AI Studio – Phoenix Engine
RC2:
https://github.com/Kreuzhofen/snapdragon-ai-studio/releases/tag/v2.0.0-rc.2
RC2A update: Snapdragon AI Studio – Phoenix Engine 2.0 RC2A is now available.
Since my RC2 update, I continued working on model setup and reliability, with a particular focus on Stable Diffusion 3.5 Medium.
I'm happy to report that the Stable Diffusion 3.5 Medium workflow using Qualcomm QAI AppBuilder is now working end-to-end in the real user flow on my Snapdragon system:
Not installed → guided setup → Qualcomm download → preparation → import → validation → activation → real image generation.
RC2A also further improves model download and installation, including handling of incomplete or outdated setup data, validation and automatic model activation.
🔥 Phoenix Boost has also received another round of improvements. The guided setup, local Ollama/Qwen2.5 3B integration, live progress reporting and inference reliability have all been refined.
The goal remains the same: make local AI image generation on Windows on Snapdragon easier to install and use without requiring users to deal with the technical details behind the models and runtimes.
Updated user documentation is now also available in English, German and Spanish.
RC2A:
https://github.com/Kreuzhofen/snapdragon-ai-studio/releases/tag/v2.0.0-rc.2a
Feedback and testing are very welcome.
Holger Kreuzhofen
Founder & Lead Developer
Snapdragon AI Studio – Phoenix Engine
Snapdragon AI Studio – Phoenix Engine is an independent open-source project and is not an official Qualcomm product.
