Sony Reveals LYTIA 901: A 200MP AI Sensor for Sharp 4x Mobile Zoom
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(Credit: Jacky Lee)
Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation has unveiled the LYTIA 901, its first 200-megapixel image sensor for smartphones, adding on-sensor AI processing to boost zoom detail and dynamic range. The stacked CMOS chip, announced on 27 November 2025 from Atsugi, Japan, measures 1/1.12-type with 0.7-micron pixels and is aimed at high-end phones expected to arrive from 2026 onwards.
The LYTIA 901 uses a Quad-Quad Bayer Coding (QQBC) layout that groups 16 neighbouring pixels of the same colour. In normal shooting, those 16 pixels are treated as one, effectively operating as a 12.5-megapixel sensor with 16-in-1 pixel binning for better sensitivity. When users zoom in, an AI learning-based remosaicing circuit inside the sensor reconstructs a full 200-megapixel image from the clustered data, enabling up to 4× in-sensor zoom while improving the rendering of fine patterns and text. Sony says this is the first time a mobile CMOS image sensor has integrated this type of AI remosaicing circuitry directly on the chip.
Mass-production shipments for the LYTIA 901 began in November 2025. While Sony has not confirmed launch partners, industry reports and leaker commentary suggest that Chinese brands such as Vivo and Oppo are likely early adopters, with rumoured models including the Vivo X300 Ultra and Oppo Find X9 Ultra tipped for early-2026 launches. These indications remain unconfirmed by the manufacturers and should be treated as projections rather than final product announcements.
Sony Steps Into The 200MP Race
The LYTIA 901 marks Sony’s formal entry into the 200-megapixel smartphone sensor segment, an area where Samsung has led since introducing its ISOCELL HP2 in early 2023. The HP2, a 200-megapixel 1/1.3-inch sensor with 0.6-micron pixels, underpins the main cameras in Samsung’s recent Galaxy Ultra flagships.
Sony’s LYTIA branding itself dates back to 2022, when the company announced a unified name for its premium mobile image sensors. Earlier LYTIA products, such as the LYT-900 and LYT-800 around the 50-megapixel class, targeted high-end devices but stopped short of the ultra-high-resolution tier that Samsung had already occupied.
The launch also fits into a broader upturn for Sony’s Imaging & Sensing Solutions (I&SS) segment. In its Q2 FY2025 results, Sony reported that I&SS sales rose by about 15% year-on-year, driven largely by higher unit prices for larger mobile image sensors and increased demand from both smartphones and digital cameras.
Technical Breakdown: AI, HDR and Frame Rates
At the heart of the LYTIA 901 is an AI learning-based remosaicing engine built into the sensor’s stacked architecture. Rather than relying solely on the phone’s main processor or ISP to interpret the QQBC array, the sensor itself performs high-speed processing to restore high-frequency details when zooming, specifically improving the reproduction of fine patterns and small lettering that can be lost in conventional demosaicing.
The sensor combines several of Sony’s recent HDR advances. Dual Conversion Gain HDR works alongside a “Fine 12-bit” analogue-to-digital converter to expand tonal gradation beyond conventional 10-bit capture, while a newer Hybrid Frame-HDR (HF-HDR) technique merges frames with different exposure conditions. Sony says this allows the LYTIA 901 to reach more than 100 dB of dynamic range in relevant modes, roughly equivalent to nearly 17 stops in photographic terms.
On the performance side, Sony’s published specifications list:
Still images
200MP (4:3) at up to 10 fps
50MP (4:3) at up to 30 fps via 2×2 binning
12.5MP (4:3) at up to 60 fps with 4×4 binning and HDR modes
Video
8K at 30 fps (2×2 binning)
4K at 120 fps (4×4 binning)
The sensor also supports all-pixel phase-detection autofocus, delivering focus coverage across the entire frame for both stills and video.
In terms of physical size, the 1/1.12-type LYTIA 901 offers a noticeably larger imaging area than Samsung’s 1/1.3-inch ISOCELL HP2, and its 0.7-micron pixels are larger than the HP2’s 0.6-micron sites. In practice this gives Sony’s chip an advantage in potential light-gathering capacity at the same field of view, although final image quality will depend on lens design and device-level processing as well as the sensor itself.
How LYTIA 901 Compares to Rivals
Samsung’s ISOCELL HP2 remains the most direct competitor. Both sensors offer 200-megapixel resolution and advanced pixel-binning schemes: Samsung’s Tetra²pixel combines pixels in 4-in-1 or 16-in-1 groupings depending on lighting conditions, while Sony’s QQBC uses a fixed 16-pixel cluster. Where the LYTIA 901 distinguishes itself is the inclusion of AI remosaicing hardware on-sensor, whereas Samsung’s approach leans more heavily on device-side ISP and AI algorithms for zoom enhancement and sharpening.
Outside the 200-megapixel class, OmniVision’s OV50K40 is a notable high-end rival in the 50-megapixel bracket. The OV50K40 uses a 1/1.3-inch format with 1.2-micron pixels and debuts the company’s TheiaCel technology, a single-exposure HDR scheme based on LOFIC and triple conversion gain. The emphasis there is on achieving “human eye-level” dynamic range without resorting to multiple exposures, rather than on ultra-high resolutions suitable for heavy cropping.
Other suppliers are also pushing premium mobile sensors. OmniVision’s 1-inch OV50X50, for instance, targets flagship phones that prioritise large pixels and strong HDR video over headline megapixel counts. LG Innotek, meanwhile, remains focused on complete camera modules and optical systems for major brands, especially in the high-end segment, but has not introduced its own native 200-megapixel smartphone sensor to date.
Implications for Phone Design and Creators
For smartphone makers, the combination of a large 1/1.12-type sensor, 200-megapixel resolution, and in-sensor AI zoom opens the door to slimmer camera islands that rely more on a single, high-quality main module rather than multiple telephoto lenses. With effective 4× in-sensor zoom and wide dynamic range, manufacturers may be able to offer competitive zoom performance with fewer optical elements, simplifying design and potentially reducing costs.
For photographers and video creators, a key advantage is the combination of high resolution with HF-HDR and Fine 12-bit ADC. Early analyses highlight the potential for nearly 17-stop dynamic range in supported modes, helping preserve highlight detail in scenes such as stage performances or backlit portraits while maintaining texture in shadows. The on-chip AI processing also reduces the data and processing burden passed to application processors like Snapdragon or Dimensity platforms, which can translate into more efficient shooting and potentially lower power draw during extended recording.
At the same time, the move toward sensor-level AI processing raises familiar questions about transparency in digital imaging. Privacy and digital-rights groups have previously warned that increasingly sophisticated AI manipulation, whether executed in software or in hardware, can blur the line between captured and altered content, underscoring the importance of clear disclosures and provenance mechanisms in camera systems. While these concerns are not specific to the LYTIA 901, the sensor’s capabilities place it squarely within that wider debate.
Hardware Built for AI-native Photography
The LYTIA 901 is the first Sony mobile sensor to ship under a new consolidated naming format: LYTIA followed by a product number, which the company says it will apply to future models as the line expands. Industry observers expect future LYTIA parts to continue blending high resolutions with on-sensor intelligence, and for application-processor vendors such as Qualcomm and MediaTek to optimise their pipelines around these AI-capable sensors over the next product cycles.
Looking more broadly, both Sony and Samsung have signalled ambitions for smartphone cameras that approach “human-eye-level” resolution and dynamic range, whether through ever-denser sensors, larger formats, or more advanced HDR and AI techniques. Exact timelines remain fluid, but the LYTIA 901 underlines a clear direction of travel: in the next few years, competition in mobile imaging is likely to centre less on raw megapixel counts alone and more on how much intelligence can be pushed directly into the sensor itself.
Source: SSSG, Techradar, Samsung Newsroom, PetaPixel, Sony, Omnivision
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