CD8 T cells lose the capacity to controlHIV infection, but the extent of the impairment of CD8 T-cell functions and the mechanisms that underlie it remain controversial. Here we report an extensive ex vivo analysis of HIV-specific CD8 T cells, covering the expression of 16 different molecules involved in CD8 function or differentiation. This approach gave remarkably homogeneous readouts in different donors and showed that CD8 dysfunction in chronic HIV infection was much more severe than described previously: some Ifng transcription was observed, but most cells lost the expression of all cytolytic molecules and Eomesodermin and T-bet by chronic infection. These results reveal a cellular mechanism explaining the dysfunction of CD8 T cells during chronic HIV infection, as CD8 T cells are known to maintain some functionality when either of these transcription factors is present, but to lose all cytotoxic activity when both are not