NVIDIA's CEO Jensen Huang has "hinted" towards plans to develop a desktop CPU in collaboration with MediaTek, confirming previous rumors.
NVIDIA x MediaTek AI PC Chip Might Not Be Far Away From Release, As Jensen Validates The Existence Of The Project
Well, Team Green has indeed been developing an AI PC chip for a long time now, based on the previous rumors we have seen surface online. However, we did expect a slight unveiling at the recent CES 2025 keynote. However, NVIDIA decided to keep the project under wraps, but Jensen did tease it during an investor presentation. In a report by Reuters, NVIDIA's CEO appreciated the work by MediaTek on creating an efficient SoC with Project DIGITS, and also hinted plans towards a desktop CPU, but without revealing any specifics.
Now they could provide that to us, and they could keep that for themselves and serve the market. And so it was a great win-win. But Huang said Nvidia has further plans for its desktop CPU but said he would "wait to tell you" what they are. "You know, obviously we have plans."
- NVIDIA's CEO via Reuters
Well, at least we now know that a desktop CPU by NVIDIA is under development, and MediaTek will surely play a huge role. Based on what we know until now, it is said that NVIDIA x MediaTek AI PC chip will be based upon the ARM architecture, rumored to employ TSMC's cutting-edge 3nm process. There's a lot of optimism around what this chip can bring to the market, given that not only MediaTek specializes in custom chips, but with NVIDIA onboard, you can expect tremendous output in terms of raw performance and graphical computation.
The PC market is in desperate need of a new competitor to step up, and while Qualcomm has played its part in making the industry more diverse with its Snapdragon X Elite offerings, there's still room for more. Companies like Intel are indeed slacking in the desktop CPU segment, while AMD is growing at its usual pace. With NVIDIA potentially entering the space, not only will we see fiercer competition, but, for the average consumer, the CPU offerings would become a lot more compelling.
In terms of when to expect NVIDIA to release its desktop CPU, it is rumored that it could be unveiled by H1 2025, with retail launch being pushed up to the end of the year, if development goes as planned.
