Mediatek SoCs with RTX graphics have been an issue for a long time as part of a PC/notebook partnership, and Nvidia has also been represented with chips in cars with its automotive platform called Drive since 2015. According to Videocardz, the latest iteration called “Drive Thor” was announced two years ago, but it was only officially confirmed last week that the new Blackwell architecture is used here.
Nvidia's Drive Thor is intended to drive systems in cars from Chinese manufacturers such as Li Auto, Zeekr, BYD, Hyper or XPENG in terms of artificial intelligence (AI) and provide various cockpit functions, including large language models (LLM) and chatbots. According to the report, Mediatek also wants to offer such functions, for which the Taiwanese fabless manufacturer has also introduced four new systems-on-a-chip (SoCs) for its “Dimensity Auto Cockpit” portfolio: CX-1, CY-1, CM -1 and CV-1, which range from premium to entry-level segments.
Source: MediaTek Mediatek and Nvidia: RTX graphics for AI and ray tracing games in the car
Mediatek and Nvidia: Blackwell for AI and ray tracing games in the car?
Mediatek's SoCs should also support Nvidia's Drive OS, which unifies the underlying hardware and software, according to the announcement. Since Mediatek only mentions a “next-gen” GPU architecture, according to Videocardz it can be assumed that it is “Blackwell” given the novelty. It's also worth noting that the announcement coincided with the reveal of “Drive Thor.”
Mediatek wants to use the whole thing in car cockpits in addition to AI functions for ray tracing effects in games and improving audio functions, it is said. While the Dimensity Auto Cockpit series itself has not yet been given a firm release date, Nvidia's Drive Thor is expected to hit the market early next year.