Elon Musk-led Tesla Inc.'s TSLA multibillion-dollar chip partnership with Samsung Electronics Co. SSNLF has sparked strong commentary from some of tech's most vocal investors and analysts — and they see big implications for AI, autonomy and the future of manufacturing.
What Happened: On Monday, Tesla confirmed a $16.5 billion multiyear deal with Samsung Electronics to manufacture its next-generation AI6 chip in Texas. Musk said the chips will be built at Samsung's new U.S. facility, calling the strategic importance of the partnership "hard to overstate."
Following the announcement, billionaire investor Chamath Palihapitiya took to X, formerly Twitter, saying, "Tesla is a physical AI company + software AI company… the only company, today, that is tying both branches of AI together at scale."
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Tech analyst Ming-Chi Kuo called the deal a "valuable opportunity" for Tesla to gain real-world foundry experience — something Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co TSM would have never allowed.
"It enables Tesla to enhance its chip design capabilities … which will give them more leverage in future negotiations," he stated.
Kuo also added that while Samsung's 2nm yield (40–45%) trails TSMC and Intel Corporation INTC, the partnership's upside outweighs the risk.
"If production falls short of expectations, the worst-case scenario for Tesla would be to shift the order back to TSMC and absorb the resulting delays to AI6," he said.
Gene Munster, managing partner at Deepwater Asset Management, said, AI6 will "unlock a far more advanced autonomous capability for Robotaxi, FSD, and Optimus," he wrote, adding that current chips may not meet Tesla's ultimate AI goals.
Why It's Important: Samsung currently manufactures Tesla's AI4 chips, which are used in the company's Full Self-Driving driver assistance system.
According to Musk, TSMC will handle production of the upcoming AI5 chip, starting in Taiwan and later shifting to Arizona.
While best known as the world's leading memory chip producer, Samsung also operates a foundry business, fabricating custom-designed logic chips for clients.
Its Texas facility plays a key role in Chairman Jay Y Lee's efforts to diversify beyond memory and grow in the contract chip manufacturing space, reported CNN.
Despite these ambitions, Samsung holds only 8% of the global foundry market, compared to TSMC's dominant 67%, according to data from market research firm TrendForce.
Price Action: On Monday, Tesla shares rose 3.02% in regular trading and edged up an additional 0.18% after hours, closing at $326.19, according to Benzinga Pro.
Benzinga's Edge Stock Rankings show that TSLA continues to face short-term downward momentum while maintaining strong upward trends over the medium and long term. The stock also scores high on quality metrics, though its valuation remains comparatively weak. More detailed performance insights are available here.
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