Samsung lands Tesla chip deal

[Anchor]

Samsung Electronics has signed a major deal with Tesla to manufacture its next-generation AI chips.

The contract is worth nearly 23 trillion won.

Attention is now focused on whether this could mark a turning point for Samsung's struggling foundry business.

Lee Do-yoon reports.

[Report]

A fully autonomous vehicle that drives itself without hands on the wheel.

Even humanoid robots that resemble humans.

Samsung Electronics has secured the contract to manufacture Tesla’s next-generation AI semiconductor, the “AI6,” which will be used in these types of AI products.

The contract is massive, valued at 22.76 trillion won.

It's a long-term agreement through 2033.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk personally revealed that Samsung would be the exclusive producer of Tesla’s AI chips at its new plant in Texas.

He also stated that the $16.5 billion deal is only a baseline figure, and the actual production volume could be several times higher.

In the second quarter of this year, Samsung’s operating profit was 4.6 trillion won—cut in half compared to the same period last year.

Amid a broader slump in the semiconductor sector, its foundry business has posted multi-trillion won losses every quarter.

By winning this order from Tesla, Samsung has taken a significant step toward catching up with Taiwan’s TSMC, the dominant global leader in foundry services.

With its technological capability now proven, Samsung plans to aggressively pursue more global tech giants like Nvidia as potential clients.

However, some experts warn that this opportunity window may not last long.

[Kyung Hee-kwon/Associate Research Fellow, Korea Institute for Industrial Economics & Trade: “The foundry and memory chip markets are expected to undergo a power shift within five years. Proving technological competitiveness with this Tesla order will be critical for maintaining an advantage in upcoming semiconductor deals.”]

Buoyed by the positive news, Samsung Electronics stock rose above 70,000 won today for the first time in 11 months.

This is Lee Do-yoon, KBS News.