Canonical announces first Ubuntu Desktop image for Qualcomm Dragonwing™ Platform with Ubuntu 24.04

This public beta enables the full Ubuntu Desktop experience on the Qualcomm Dragonwing™ QCS6490 and QCS5430 processors and complements existing Ubuntu Server support with significant enhancements. Together, these updates provide a powerful development environment for building next-generation AI-driven edge applications.

April 30, 2025 –

Canonical, the publisher of Ubuntu and provider of open source security, support and services, today announced the beta release of Ubuntu 24.04 Desktop and Server images for the Dragonwing QCS6490 and QCS5430 processors. This release marks a major milestone: the release of the first official Ubuntu Desktop image on Dragonwing processors, delivering the full Ubuntu Desktop experience at the edge.

This new beta image is designed for developers, ODMs/OEMs, and customers across industrial, and embedded IoT sectors. It unlocks powerful AI capabilities at the edge, combining advanced graphics, multimedia support, and on-device machine learning into a unified platform for next-generation applications. Certified versions of Ubuntu 24.04 Desktop and Server images will soon be available with long term support and maintenance.

This beta program is completely open to the public: developers will be able to download and flash the images on the Qualcomm Dragonwing™ RB3 Gen2 Vision and RB3 Gen2 Lite Vision kits by following the instructions on Canonical’s Qualcomm IoT Platforms portal.

“This release is a significant step towards delivering the full Ubuntu experience on our intelligent edge,” said Pragya Pathi, Director of Product Management at Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. “By enabling Ubuntu Desktop and Server on the Dragonwing reference boards hardware, we’re empowering developers to build and deploy next-generation IoT solutions across a wide range of edge use cases.”

Download and install Ubuntu 24.04 Ubuntu Desktop and Server images

Bringing the full Ubuntu experience to a broad spectrum of intelligent edge use cases

This announcement follows the beta release of Ubuntu Server 22.04, adding a completely new set of Ubuntu desktop and server features for edge AI applications.

• Get the Full Ubuntu Desktop experience at the edge
  This release brings the complete Ubuntu Desktop environment to the Qualcomm Dragonwing QCS6490 and QCS5430 processors, with advanced UI capabilities and a seamless desktop-grade experience on edge and embedded systems. By combining the platform’s powerful AI acceleration with high-performance graphics, developers can now build rich, interactive user experiences on a wide range of display-enabled devices.

• Optimized for intelligent edge applications
  The integration of Ubuntu Desktop with the Qualcomm Dragonwing QCS6490 and QCS5430 processors enables a new class of AI-powered edge devices and is ideal for smart kiosks, industrial monitoring stations, and on-device machine learning. This makes it easier to deploy complex applications with local processing, improved responsiveness, and enhanced privacy.

• Expanded hardware support with Ubuntu 24.04 enhancements
  Canonical has also enhanced the Ubuntu 24.04 image with improved support for critical hardware components, including:
  • Enhanced camera and multimedia capabilities
  • Expanded sensor integration
  • Key performance improvements and bug fixes
    

With these enhancements, developers get access to the full power of Ubuntu Desktop and Server images on Canonical’s Qualcomm IoT platform in a security-focused and flexible Linux environment that is familiar to them.

For ODMs and OEMs, a validated Ubuntu stack on Qualcomm Dragonwing IoT hardware can reduce time to market and integration complexities. Canonical’s enterprise support offerings also ensure ODM/OEM partners can deliver production-grade solutions with confidence, backed by security updates and long-term maintenance.

Explore about our certification program

Canonical partners with silicon vendors, board manufacturers, and leading enterprises to shorten the average time to market. If you are deploying Ubuntu on Dragonwing platforms and want access to ongoing bug fixes and security maintenance, or if you wish to learn more about our solutions for custom board enablement and application development services, please reach out to Canonical.

If you have any questions about the platform or would like information about our certification program then simply contact us.

Download the beta image >

About Canonical 

Canonical, the publisher of Ubuntu, provides open source security, support and services. Our portfolio covers critical systems, from the smallest devices to the largest clouds, from the kernel to containers, from databases to AI. With customers that include top tech brands, emerging startups, governments and home users, Canonical delivers trusted open source for everyone. 

Learn more at canonical.com

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