There are reports that Nvidia and MediaTek are collaborating on a 3nm process AI PC CPU, which is expected to complete design and prepare for mass production this month, with mass production expected to begin in the second half of 2025. The processor is expected to be paired with Nvidia's GPUs and will likely be adopted by major OEMs such as Lenovo, Dell, HP, and Asus. In addition, the chip may be priced around $300.
"MediaTek's extensive experience in mobile chips and Nvidia's strong expertise in AI and graphics will combine MediaTek's expertise in mobile with Nvidia's advanced technologies in AI and graphics to accelerate the market-to-market and adoption of its products."
This AI PC processor will likely be built on the ARM architecture and will be manufactured using TSMC's 3nm process. Nvidia is likely to have a next-generation integrated graphics processing unit (iGPU) on it, taking the SoC's performance to new heights. In addition, MediaTek has successfully developed its first chip using TSMC's 3nm process, which is expected to begin mass production in 2024.
Different from the previous reports circulating on the Internet, this report only refers to the chip as an AI PC CPU, because the previous reports disclosed that the news refers to mobile chips or SoCs. MediaTek has always focused on mobile products and has established a partnership with AMD. It has also been previously reported that AMD is using MediaTek's Wi-Fi 6E solution on its mobile platform. It's no surprise that the collaboration between MediaTek and Nvidia may shift their chip lineup away from the mobile phone market to AI PC solutions. This year, Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Elite chip has caused a huge response in the market, but it has also brought some lessons. Still, a mobile-focused company like MediaTek has a chance to launch a product that can compete with Windows-on-Arm systems.
Pictured: Nvidia and MediaTek collaborate on 3nm AI PC CPU
When evaluating the performance of computers with Snapdragon X chips, reviewers pointed to a salient problem: insufficient graphics processing power. And Nvidia has a strong strength in graphics processing and can quickly make up for this shortcoming. Whether it is Nvidia's return to the mobile graphics market or its foray into the AI PC market in the laptop field, NVIDIA's brand influence is expected to greatly promote the development of MediaTek chips.
Currently, the only officially announced collaboration between MediaTek and Nvidia is the Dimensity Auto Cockpit platform, an automotive SoC that uses NVIDIA's graphics IP and Drive OS operating system. The chip aims to become a market leader in automotive chips by providing comprehensive infotainment platform support, including security features such as AAA gaming with RTX graphics and HDR multi-camera support.
MediaTek also recently unveiled its new flagship smartphone chipset, the Dimensity 9400, which is optimized for edge AI applications, immersive gaming, great photography, and more. The Dimensity 9400 features a second-generation all-big-core design, based on Arm's v9.2 CPU architecture, and combines state-of-the-art GPUs and NPUs to achieve extreme performance in ultra-energy-efficient designs. This collaboration could have a significant impact on the AI PC market, providing consumers with more choice and potentially driving more affordable pricing. As the AI and PC markets evolve, the partnership between Nvidia and MediaTek is expected to play an important role in this emerging field.
