musk's xai considers samsung for ai chip partnership after tesla's massive deal

2025-09-10 general

Seoul, Wednesday, 10 September 2025.
fresh on the heels of tesla’s colossal $16.5 billion ai chip agreement, elon musk’s xai is reportedly exploring a major ai chip deal with samsung. this potential partnership underscores the escalating race for custom ai hardware. xai, like openai, seeks advanced solutions. this deal could significantly boost samsung’s foundry business. it could also cement its standing in the competitive ai chip market. the ai6 chip, key for tesla’s autonomous driving, will leverage samsung’s sf2 tech, offering a 12% performance boost and reduced power consumption.

samsung’s foundry turnaround

Samsung’s foundry division is potentially on the verge of a significant recovery, fueled by substantial investments in hardware from AI companies like xAI and OpenAI [1]. These firms are actively developing custom AI chips, creating a demand for manufacturers such as Samsung and TSMC [1]. Securing xAI as a client could further validate Samsung’s capabilities and attract additional partnerships within the burgeoning AI sector [3]. The company is already producing sample AI6 chips in its South Korean factory [3]. Samsung plans to introduce its 2nm process to its U.S. factory in Taylor, Texas, demonstrating its commitment to advanced manufacturing in the United States [3].

xai’s ai chip ambitions

xAI is actively pursuing the development of its own AI chip, tentatively named X1, with mass production slated for the third quarter of 2026, with an initial run of 300,000 units [2]. To achieve its objectives, xAI aims to amass 50 million H100-scale computing power within five years [2]. This ambition explains xAI’s exploration of partnerships with chip manufacturers [2]. The company has also been actively recruiting talent for custom silicon development, signaling its commitment to in-house chip design [1]. xAI recently established a Seattle office, intensifying competition with rivals like OpenAI and Anthropic [5].

market implications and samsung’s strategic positioning

The potential collaboration between Samsung and xAI arrives when Samsung seeks to revitalize its foundry business [3]. Samsung’s willingness to accommodate Musk’s involvement in the chip production process could prove crucial in securing the xAI deal [3]. Market sentiment currently reflects considerable confidence in Samsung’s ability to succeed in this venture [3]. A successful partnership with xAI would reduce AI firms’ dependence on Nvidia GPUs and save substantial costs in large-scale AI deployments [6]. Broadcom recently secured a $10 billion custom chip order with OpenAI, highlighting the growing trend of AI companies designing their own chips [3].

tesla’s ai endeavors and samsung’s advantage

Tesla is also actively involved in developing its own AI chips, with the AI5 and AI6 chips designed to support its AI and autonomous driving initiatives [4]. The AI6 chip, which Samsung will manufacture, will use Samsung’s SF2 technology, delivering a 12% performance increase, 25% reduction in power consumption, and 8% decrease in chip area compared to the previous generation [3]. Musk has indicated that the initial $16.5 billion deal with Samsung could expand based on actual chip production [3]. This existing relationship and Samsung’s advanced manufacturing capabilities position it favorably to secure the xAI partnership [1].

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AI chips Samsung foundry