Tesla has announced that its AI5 chip has officially completed tape-out, with additional details now emerging. According to Hankyung, the prototype has been confirmed to be produced on Samsung Electronics’ domestic foundry line. As highlighted by SEDaily, the marking “KR2613” is visible on the prototype, indicating that it was manufactured at Samsung Electronics’ foundry facility in Korea (KR) during the 13th week of 2026, corresponding to late March to early April.

This detail carries particular significance. As noted by SEDaily, Tesla’s core autonomous driving chips had until now been produced almost exclusively by Taiwan’s TSMC. The appearance of this prototype label suggests that Samsung Electronics may be beginning to gain a foothold in the supply chain, potentially signaling early signs of a shift in TSMC’s dominance.

Memory adoption details have also emerged. Hankyung indicates that the chip’s memory is supplied by SK hynix, while Samsung Electronics’ memory plays a broader role across the supply chain. Meanwhile, Newsis reports that Tesla’s AI5 chip is equipped with Samsung’s next-generation low-power memory, LPDDR5X.

As for the manufacturing process, SEDaily reports that Samsung has introduced “SF2T,” a custom foundry process tailored exclusively for Tesla. The company indicated that this customized process, originally under development for the follow-up chip AI6, was applied earlier than planned to AI5, reportedly to create a lock-in effect.

As Hankyung indicates, mass production of AI5 is expected to take place across TSMC’s fabs in Taiwan and Arizona, as well as Samsung Electronics’ Taylor fab in Texas, with full-scale production anticipated around 2027.

Notably, beyond AI5, Tesla has reportedly outlined changes to its future advanced chip roadmap. According to ZDNet, Tesla had initially identified only Samsung Electronics as the manufacturer for its AI6 chip. However, the company has since introduced “AI6.5,” an upgraded version of AI6, and decided to outsource its production to TSMC.

Samsung Gains Momentum in 2nm Push, but Challenges Persist

SEDaily notes that as TSMC faces supply constraints, Samsung is benefiting from the resulting spillover demand. The report also adds that sources indicate Samsung’s 2nm process is believed to have secured roughly a 30% unit cost advantage over TSMC.

While Samsung’s 2nm foundry push appears to be making progress, SEDaily notes that it remains too early for optimism. Although Samsung struggled with low yields during the initial rollout of its 3nm Gate-All-Around (GAA) process, the company has shown improvement at the 2nm node. Yields, which were reportedly below 50% in the second half of last year, have recently climbed above 50%, but are still believed to fall short of levels required for stable profitability.

Read more

• [News] Musk Confirms AI5 Tape-Out, but Wrong TSMC Tag Triggers Social Media Mix-Up
• [News] Samsung 2nm Yields Reportedly at ~55%, Below Mass Production Threshold; Qualcomm May Opt for TSMC

(Photo credit: Samsung)