MediaTek's new 3nm Googlebook chip challenges Intel and Qualcomm — but no device yet
MediaTek has announced the Dimensity CX C10 Max, a 3nm chip aimed at breaking Intel and Qualcomm's grip on the new Googlebook laptop category. Five manufacturers — Acer, ASUS, Lenovo, Dell, and HP — MediaTek Dimensity CX C10 Max: a 3nm chip built for AI-first Googlebooks starting at $899 on October 4–5, all running Intel or Qualcomm silicon. MediaTek's entry is confirmed but has no shipping device to show yet.
The chip
The Dimensity CX C10 Max is the first chip in MediaTek's new Compute Experiences (CX) family, designed for thin, fanless laptops. It is built on TSMC's 3nm N3E process and uses an all-big-core eight-core CPU layout — meaning every core is performance-grade rather than efficiency-focused:
- 1× Cortex-X925 at up to 3.73 GHz with 2 MB L2 cache - 3× Cortex-X4 cores (1 MB L2 each) - 4× Cortex-A720 cores
The chip pairs that CPU with 12 MB of L3 cache, 10 MB of system-level cache, and LPDDR5X memory support. Graphics come from an Arm Immortalis-G925 MC11 — an 11-core GPU with hardware ray tracing. Connectivity covers Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6.0.
MediaTek Dimensity CX C10 Max chip architecture
The AI claim
MediaTek's NPU 890 is rated at 55 TOPS (tera-operations per second), which the company uses to claim an edge over Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Elite at 45 TOPS. The higher figure is meant to support on-device Gemini AI features without sending data to the cloud. That comparison is MediaTek's own — no independent benchmarks exist yet for this chip on real hardware.
MediaTek NPU 890 — 55 TOPS AI performance overview
The missing device
MediaTek has confirmed a partnership with Google and Lenovo. A Lenovo hybrid tablet-notebook is named as the first Dimensity CX C10 Max Googlebook. Neither company has disclosed the model name, full specifications, pricing, or a ship date. Every Googlebook available to buy right now uses Intel Core Ultra or Snapdragon X Elite — the MediaTek option remains unannounced in practical terms.
The Dimensity CX C10 Max looks competitive on paper, and the 55 TOPS NPU figure is a legitimate spec advantage over current Googlebook chips. Whether that translates to better real-world AI performance — and when a buyer can actually purchase one — is a question MediaTek has not yet answered.
