Musk Confirms Tesla’s AI6 Chip Production At Samsung’s US Plant

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has announced that Samsung Electronics will manufacture the company’s next-generation AI6 chip at its semiconductor facility in Texas.

Musk made the announcement on Sunday (US time) via his social media platform.

Taking to X, he posted, “The strategic importance of this is hard to overstate.”

He also shared that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), which is finalising the design of the AI5 chip, will initially produce it in Taiwan, according to the Yonhap news agency.

Further, Musk mentioned that Samsung, which currently handles production of Tesla’s AI4 chip, has agreed to work with the electric vehicle maker to improve manufacturing efficiency through collaborative efforts.

The upcoming AI6 chip is being developed with scalability in mind. It is likely to power a range of Tesla technologies, from humanoid robots and autonomous vehicles to advanced AI data centres.

Meanwhile, on Monday, Samsung Electronics confirmed it had secured a massive semiconductor contract worth 22.8 trillion won (approximately USD 16.4 billion) from a major unnamed client.

According to a regulatory filing, the foundry agreement will likely run through 31 December 2033.

The contract represents 7.6% of Samsung’s annual revenue of 300.9 trillion won in 2023, making it the largest semiconductor deal in the company’s history.

Industry watchers believe the agreement could help Samsung’s foundry business narrow the gap with TSMC, which continues to lead the global chip manufacturing sector.

Despite this major order, Samsung’s foundry and System LSI divisions have been underperforming.

Earlier this month, the company projected an operating profit of 4.59 trillion won and revenue of 74 trillion won for the second quarter.

However, the reported profit fell short of market expectations, largely due to weak performance in those very segments.

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