Tesla has struck a massive $16.5 billion deal with tech giant Samsung Electronics to produce its next-generation AI6 chips. A move set to power everything from Full Self-Driving (FSD) in its cars to its upcoming Optimus humanoid robots and AI training systems.
The chips will be manufactured at Samsung’s new chip fabrication facility in Texas, which will be fully dedicated to Tesla’s production needs.
“Samsung’s giant new Texas fab will be dedicated to making Tesla’s next-generation AI6 chip. The strategic importance of this is hard to overstate.” — Elon Musk posted on X, Sunday night.
The AI6, also known as Hardware 6, is Tesla’s first chip designed to scale across its entire AI ecosystem. Unlike previous generations built solely for self-driving, AI6 is intended to handle: Driver assistance through FSD (Supervised), the Tesla Optimus robot, and AI training in data centers.
This development reinforces Tesla’s shift from just an automaker to a multi-domain AI and robotics company.
For Samsung, this deal is a turning point. The company had struggled to gain traction in the chip-making market, especially in the U.S., after failing to secure long-term customers. Now, with Tesla on board, Samsung is not only back in the game, it will lead.
“Actual output is likely to be several times higher,” — Musk wrote in another post on X, hinting that Tesla’s spending with Samsung could exceed the $16.5 billion initially committed.
In a more hands-on twist, Musk announced that Tesla engineers will assist Samsung in optimizing chip production efficiency, a rare move in such high-stakes chip manufacturing partnerships.
“This is a critical point, as I will walk the line personally to accelerate the pace of progress. And the fab is conveniently located not far from my house.” — Elon Musk
Tesla isn’t betting on just one manufacturer. Musk also revealed that the AI5 chip, primarily built for FSD, has just completed design and will be produced by TSMC, starting in Taiwan and later in Arizona. Meanwhile, Samsung is already responsible for producing the current AI4 chips, continuing a long-standing relationship between the two companies.
Tesla’s first custom chip effort — the FSD Computer (Hardware 3) — was launched in 2019 and was also built by Samsung. It featured a redundant dual-chip architecture to ensure safety in self-driving applications and marked Tesla’s break from using Nvidia hardware.
This deal represents more than just chip production — it’s a cornerstone of Tesla’s transformation into a vertically integrated AI company. The AI6 chip could be the heart of everything Tesla builds in the next decade: from driverless cars to intelligent robots to autonomous logistics systems.
It also marks a major win for U.S.-based chip production, with Samsung’s Texas fab now playing a central role in global AI development — and with Elon Musk promising to personally oversee progress.
