By Wen-Yee Lee
TAIPEI, Sept 15 (Reuters) - Taiwan's MediaTek unveiled on Tuesday a new smartphone chip made using TSMC's most advanced manufacturing technology, as it targets the premium handset market with semiconductors capable of running more AI features directly on the device.
The move is part of a broader effort to gain ground on U.S. rival Qualcomm in premium phones, where higher-priced devices and AI features offer chipmakers better margins.
MediaTek said the Dimensity 9600 Pro is its first mobile
processor built using Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co's cutting-edge 2-nanometre process. It also introduced the Dimensity 9600M, made using TSMC's 3-nanometre process and aimed at a broader segment of the flagship smartphone market.
The first smartphones powered by the two chips will be launched soon, the company said. It has previously supplied chips to Chinese smartphone customers such as Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo.
The 9600 Pro includes a dedicated AI processor, known as a neural processing unit, that MediaTek said can handle more complex generative-AI applications on the phone itself. It said, without giving further details, that the NPU delivered a 51% improvement over the previous generation in processing a user's prompt before an AI model begins generating a response.
MediaTek's market value surpassed that of Qualcomm earlier this year.
RISING PRICES
JC Hsu, corporate senior vice president at MediaTek, said the company was working with handset makers on ways to limit the effect of higher component costs on consumers as the AI boom strains supply chains.
Still, Hsu saw opportunities for MediaTek as advanced hardware and new AI features make higher price tags increasingly common.
"As the overall market moves to higher prices, I believe there is still room for us to increase our share of the flagship segment," Hsu said.
Apple's new foldable iPhone, announced last week, will retail for as much as $3,199 in the United States for the highest-storage model.
MEDIATEK RAPIDLY EXPANDING AI BUSINESS
MediaTek, one of the world's largest designers of smartphone chips, has also been expanding its AI business into data-centre and custom-chip products, as technology companies pour billions of dollars into AI infrastructure.
Its first AI accelerator designed for a major U.S. cloud service provider is expected to enter mass production in the fourth quarter of this year.
MediaTek raised $3.9 billion last month through a convertible bond sale. Nvidia invested $3.5 billion in the offering, while Alphabet, a long-term MediaTek partner in AI infrastructure, also participated.
(Reporting by Wen-Yee Lee; Editing by Eduardo Baptista, Kirsten Donovan)
