With the MPC 3.10.1 firmware, Akai is giving MPC owners an official toolkit for building the instruments and effects that run inside the box 12.

What the MPC Plugin SDK does

The headline is the MPC Plugin SDK, for building instrument and effect plugins that run on standalone MPC and Force hardware 1. Akai's release notes say it can be paired with an AI coding platform, so an idea described in plain language can become a working plugin without reading or writing the C++ yourself 1. Finished plugins go into a "VST2 Plugins" folder on internal or attached storage 1.

The catch: Akai labels the SDK and the other new standalone enhancements Experimental. You switch them on under Menu > Preferences > Enhancements, and the notes warn they may affect stability 1.

The rest of the update

  • A USB mouse pointer, plus PNG screenshots with a four-button shortcut 1.
  • Unlimited audio and plugin tracks within the overall track limit, and no instance caps on heavy plugins 1.
  • Advanced audio settings for block size, latency adjustment and sample rate 1.
  • A developer panel that also opens an SSH server, which Akai warns against using on untrusted networks 1.

Supported hardware runs from the MPC XL and Live III back to the original MPC Live and MPC X, plus Force in standalone mode 1. Synth Anatomy reports the update arrived on Nov 12, 2026 2.

For how the big computer DAWs moved this month, see our November DAW check, and for a new interface that does its processing onboard, see Audient's iD Mk3 range.