MediaTek Launches 2nm Dimensity 9600 Pro and 9600M With 30B On-Device AI Support

Q: Does the Dimensity 9600M's reliance on older memory secretly cripple the advanced on-device AI features promised by MediaTek's newest architecture?

No. The Dimensity 9600M’s older LPDDR5X memory and UFS 4.1 storage likely limit the speed and scale of some on-device AI tasks, but they do not appear to “secretly cripple” the AI features MediaTek is advertising. The evidence points to a tiered product strategy, not a hidden disablement. MediaTek says the 9600M keeps the latest Agentic AI Engine, always-on perception, AI-enhanced imaging and a dedicated NPU for generative and agentic AI. Separate product materials describe the 9600M with an NPU 990 plus an ultra-efficient NPU, support for models such as Gemini Nano 4 and Qwen 3.5 Omni 4B, and AI features across creativity, conferencing and productivity. What the older memory does change is throughput. Faster memory matters for local AI because inference—especially token generation and large-model decode—is heavily constrained by memory bandwidth. LPDDR6 and UFS 5.0 on the 9600 Pro should help it load larger models faster and sustain better token rates than the 9600M’s LPDDR5X and UFS 4.1. MediaTek itself ties the Pro’s AI push to LPDDR6, UFS 5.0 and a larger 34.5MB cache. So the likely trade-off is this: the 9600M should still run many advanced on-device AI functions, especially smaller or more optimized models, but it may deliver slower responses, longer model load times and less headroom for very large local models than the 9600 Pro. That is a performance gap, not clear evidence that the architecture’s AI promise is fundamentally undermined.

3 articles · Updated · Wccftech · Sep 15

MediaTek expanded its 2nm smartphone lineup with the Dimensity 9600 Pro and 9600M, with the first phones using both chips due later this year.
The 9600 Pro is the higher-end part: MediaTek says it delivers 17% faster single-core performance, 15% higher multi-core throughput and support for up to 30B local AI MoE models.
That Pro chip uses a new 2+3+3 all-big-core CPU topping out at 4.55GHz, plus LPDDR6 and UFS 5.0, which MediaTek says raise memory bandwidth 33% and double storage speeds versus two-channel UFS 4.0.
MediaTek also claims 61% lower multi-core peak power use, 40% faster LLM token generation and 185fps gaming on the Pro, underscoring its push against Qualcomm's next flagship Snapdragon.
The 9600M keeps the 2nm process but steps down to a 1+3+4 CPU, LPDDR5X, UFS 4.1 and a 7.4Gbps 5G modem, positioning it as a broader flagship option for partner devices in late 2026 and 2027.