MediaTek unveils its first 2nm-based smartphone system-on-chip, the Dimensity 9600 Pro, promising enhanced AI capabilities, performance gains, and power efficiency for premium devices this quarter.
MediaTek has unveiled the Dimensity 9600 Pro, describing it as its first smartphone system-on-chip built on TSMC’s 2nm process. The launch places the company among the earliest chip designers to claim this node, and it is aimed squarely at premium devices that need stronger performance without a corresponding rise in power draw. MediaTek said the chip is designed to support more advanced on-device AI, faster graphics and higher-end imaging in forthcoming handsets.
At the core of the platform is a 2+3+3 all-big-core CPU arrangement based on Arm’s C2 family. MediaTek says the configuration includes two C2-Ultra cores running at up to 4.55GHz, three C2-Pro performance cores at 4.35GHz and three efficiency-focused C2-Pro cores at 3.1GHz. The company claims up to 17% better single-core performance, 15% better multi-core performance and a 61% reduction in multi-core power consumption versus the prior generation.
AI is the main strategic emphasis. According to MediaTek, the Dimensity 9600 Pro uses a dual-NPU design and an Agentic AI Engine intended to let phones analyse context, make suggestions and execute tasks more intelligently on the device itself. The chip supports large local models, including systems of up to 30 billion parameters, and combines the NPU and CPU through what the company calls an AI Computing Fusion Architecture. It also adds LPDDR6 memory support and UFS 5.0 storage, which should help with bandwidth-heavy workloads.
The graphics and imaging subsystems have also been upgraded. MediaTek says the new G2-Ultra NX GPU delivers up to 27% higher peak performance, 24% lower power consumption at peak load and 18% faster ray tracing, with gaming performance claimed at up to 185 frames per second. The Imagiq 1290 image signal processor adds 4K240 ultra-slow-motion capture, 4K60 AI True Colour Tone and 4K120 log video. Industry reports say the first phones using the Dimensity 9600 Pro are expected to arrive this quarter, with several flagship models likely to adopt the chip.
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