MediaTek is preparing to launch its next-generation flagship chipsets, the Dimensity 9600 and Dimensity 9600 Pro, expected in September 2026.
These processors will power upcoming premium smartphones from major brands.
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The Dimensity 9600 Pro marks MediaTek's first Pro-branded mobile processor, featuring significant upgrades over the standard model.
Both chips are designed to compete with Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 and Apple's A-series chips.
Process node and CPU architecture
The Dimensity 9600 Pro is rumored to use TSMC's advanced 2nm (N2P) process node, offering a 10–15% performance boost and 25–30% better power efficiency.
The standard Dimensity 9600 may use a 3nm node or a lower-binned 2nm chip due to supply constraints and cost considerations.
Both chips are expected to adopt a new '2+3+3' CPU configuration, departing from the traditional '1+3+4' design.
The Pro variant's two ultra cores could reach a peak frequency of 5.0 GHz, while the standard model will likely have a lower clock speed.
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The ultra cores are reportedly Arm's Cortex C2-Ultra, codenamed "Canyon." The three performance cores are codenamed "Gelas-B," and the three efficiency cores are codenamed "Gelas."
GPU and gaming capabilities
Both Dimensity 9600 chips are said to feature Arm's next-generation "Magni" GPU architecture, with the Pro variant having higher core counts.
Integrated dedicated hardware blocks may offload heavy gaming tasks, enabling hardware-level frame interpolation to scale 60 FPS games to 120 FPS or higher.
The Magni GPU also supports native resolution upscaling and upgraded ray tracing for more realistic lighting and shadows.
The Dimensity 9600 Pro is expected to support LPDDR6 RAM and UFS 5.0 storage for faster data transfer speeds.
AI and NPU capabilities
MediaTek has reportedly enhanced AI performance with a dual-NPU design for layered computing and a Neural Shader Scheduler (NSS) that dynamically allocates tasks between the GPU and NPU.
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The chip may also include hardware support for Arm's Scalable Matrix Extension 2 (SME2) to accelerate matrix math for faster AI responses.
The Dimensity 9600 series is also expected to power OpenAI's first AI-first smartphone.
Benchmark estimates
Tipster Digital Chat Station shared early Geekbench 6 estimates based on engineering samples.
The Dimensity 9600 Pro could achieve a single-core score of 4200–4300 and a multi-core score of 12000–12500.
For comparison, the previous generation scored around 4000 single-core and 11000 multi-core.
Upcoming devices
Several flagship phones are expected to feature the Dimensity 9600 series, including the Vivo X500 (Dimensity 9600), Vivo X500 Pro (Dimensity 9600 Pro), Oppo Find X10 (Dimensity 9600), and Oppo Find X10 Pro (Dimensity 9600 Pro).
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The first devices could launch as early as September 2026.
