In brief: MediaTek has introduced the Dimensity 9600 Pro, its first smartphone chip on TSMC's 2nm process. Two NPUs target larger on-device AI models. Independent measurements and named phones are still missing.
Eight fast cores, two AI roles
The CPU uses eight large cores in a 2+3+3 arrangement: two C2-Ultra cores reach 4.55GHz, three C2-Pro cores run at 4.35GHz and another three at 3.1GHz. MediaTek claims 17% higher single-core and 15% higher multi-core performance. At peak multi-core performance, power consumption is said to fall by 61%.
For AI, the chip combines an NPU 1090 with a second, efficiency-focused block. The company claims 51% faster prompt prefill and 55% more tokens per watt. It supports models with up to 30 billion parameters. For frequently active AI features, MediaTek reports 40% lower power use.
The platform includes a G2-Ultra-NX GPU, 34.5MB of cache, LPDDR6 and UFS 5.0. MediaTek claims 27% higher GPU peak performance with 24% less power. Every percentage comes from vendor tests on reference devices; retail phones can differ.
MediaTek is also launching the Dimensity 9600M on TSMC's 3nm process for a broader portion of the flagship market. The first phones using both chips are expected soon, according to the company.
Pandorex Analysis
Support for a 30B model does not mean that such a model will be practical on every phone. Memory capacity, quantisation, bandwidth, cooling and sustained power limits remain decisive. “2nm” is also the name of a process generation, not a measured transistor length.
The meaningful step is therefore not one peak figure but the combination of a new process, LPDDR6, UFS 5.0 and specialised NPU roles. Independent tests in shipping devices must show whether that enables sustained local AI sessions rather than short demonstrations.