Was the 36MP sensor a Sony Trojan Horse?

NO, 36MP sensor a Nikon spec sensor 'selection'; they wanted it, SONY delivered, nothing more/less

it was Nikon's own choice to add whatever else (AF of whatever level) to their 36Mp dSLR, not Sony's decision at all.

it's absurd to lay the blame on Sony for Nikon not have an appropriate AF tech to handle a 36Mp sensor

i wouldn't be the least surprised if the 'better AF' of the D4 cannot handle 36Mp either, as it can barely keep up at 16Mp with others, like Canon with 18-23Mp (1DX/5DMkIII/6D)

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sdyue
(not 'Steve D Yue' (my husband (RIP)))