One example where XIP would be really useful is MT7688KN [1], which is a variant of MT7688 WiFi router SoC, already well supported by Linux/OpenWRT, plus 8MB of RAM on the same package.
Since no external RAM is required this makes for some very compact WiFi repeaters [2,3]. But all of them ship with VxWorks. I've tried to tinker with OpenWrt on this chip, but with 2-3MB free RAM after kernel boots (and that's before wifi modules are loaded), it doesn't look too good. With XIP, on the other hand, MT7688KN can potentially become a useful OpenWRT platform.
Since no external RAM is required this makes for some very compact WiFi repeaters [2,3]. But all of them ship with VxWorks. I've tried to tinker with OpenWrt on this chip, but with 2-3MB free RAM after kernel boots (and that's before wifi modules are loaded), it doesn't look too good. With XIP, on the other hand, MT7688KN can potentially become a useful OpenWRT platform.
[1] https://www.mediatek.com/products/smartHome/mt7688k
[2] https://fccid.io/2AK8V-WF8300
[3] Xaiomi Mi Wifi+