Samsung gave Elon Musk his personal workspace at the Taylor factory, where he can babysit Tesla's chip production lines directly. The Korean chairman met with the Tesla boss to hash out details on AI5 and AI6 silicon, and both companies locked in a massive $16.5 billion partnership that puts Samsung as the automaker's biggest US foundry partner.
Musk wants tighter control over the feedback loop for custom chip development and thinks his current foundry partners, like TSMC and Samsung, still cannot keep up with demand projections of 100 billion to 200 billion units yearly. He keeps talking about building a TeraFab and creating an independent semiconductor supply chain from scratch because geopolitical stuff makes Taiwan-based partners feel risky for long-term stability.
The billionaire claims his AI5 and AI6 chips compete in their segment against chips from other players, and Tesla faces heat from rivals like Rivian in the automotive chip space.
Musk wants tighter control over the feedback loop for custom chip development and thinks his current foundry partners, like TSMC and Samsung, still cannot keep up with demand projections of 100 billion to 200 billion units yearly. He keeps talking about building a TeraFab and creating an independent semiconductor supply chain from scratch because geopolitical stuff makes Taiwan-based partners feel risky for long-term stability.
The billionaire claims his AI5 and AI6 chips compete in their segment against chips from other players, and Tesla faces heat from rivals like Rivian in the automotive chip space.
