Arm Launches Lumex Chip Designs to Power Next-Gen AI Smartphones

Arm Holdings plc today unveiled Lumex, a new portfolio of chip designs built to help handset makers develop more powerful processors for AI-driven smartphones. The suite includes CPUs, GPUs, and a high-speed interconnect, enabling manufacturers to combine components into custom system-on-chips.

"Lumex unites our highest performing CPUs with Scalable Matrix Extension version 2 (SME2), GPUs and system IP, enabling the ecosystem to bring AI devices to market faster and deliver experiences from desktop-class mobile gaming to real-time translation, smarter assistants, and personalised applications," Chris Bergey, SVP and GM of the Client Line of Business, Arm wrote in a blog post.

Arm’s new Lumex platform gives partners flexibility in how they design next-generation system-on-chips (SoCs). Companies can either adopt Lumex as delivered—taking advantage of Arm’s optimised physical implementations for faster time to market—or configure the RTL themselves to tailor performance for specific device tiers.

Lumex combines powerful new components for mobile computing and AI. At its core is the SME2-enabled Armv9.3 CPU cluster, featuring the flagship C1-Ultra and C1-Pro for premium devices. For the sub-flagship segment, Arm introduced the C1-Premium, designed for best-in-class area efficiency.

On the graphics side, the Mali G1-Ultra GPU brings next-generation ray tracing and enhanced AI performance for advanced gaming and immersive experiences. Supporting them is the C1-DSU, Arm’s most flexible and power-efficient DynamIQ Shared Unit to date.

Optimised for 3nm nodes, Lumex also integrates deeply with KleidiAI libraries, ensuring seamless AI acceleration across the software stack.

The flagship C1-Ultra CPU delivers 25% better single-thread performance than its predecessor, making it ideal for compute-heavy tasks like generative AI. The lineup also includes the C1-Premium for lighter AI apps, C1-Pro for sustained performance, and the compact C1-Nano for wearables.

“As part of the new Arm Lumex compute subsystem (CSS) platform, the Arm C1 CPU cluster – the first built on the Armv9.3 architecture – is the next evolution of our highest performing CPU cluster for consumer devices, designed to unleash the full potential of on-device AI and elevate the user experience,” Stefan Rosinger, Arm’s senior director of CPU product management, added.

Arm expects the first Lumex-powered smartphones to arrive later this year or in early 2026.