In November 2025, during a shareholder meeting, Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, announced that Tesla has ambitions to construct a 'colossal chip - manufacturing plant'. The plant aims to have an initial monthly production capacity of 100,000 wafers, with the ultimate objective of reaching 1 million wafers per month. This facility will be responsible for producing Tesla's in - house developed AI5 and AI6 chips, which are crucial to fulfilling the chip requirements of its autonomous driving and humanoid robot businesses.

Musk also disclosed that Tesla is in the process of developing its fifth - generation AI chip. The AI5 chip will be co - produced by TSMC's Arizona plant and Samsung's Texas plant. Small - scale production is slated for 2026, followed by large - scale mass production in 2027. As for the AI6 chip, Samsung will remain its manufacturer. A cooperation agreement related to this has been signed, with a value as high as USD 16.5 billion, and it will be in effect until 2033.

Several reasons underpin Musk's proposal to build this plant. Firstly, the existing suppliers have limited production capacities, which are unable to keep up with Tesla's ever - increasing demand for chips. Secondly, there are concerns that geopolitical factors could disrupt the chip supply chain. Thirdly, Tesla aims to gain more research and development support and production flexibility. Lastly, by consolidating advantages, the company hopes to enhance system integration and maximize the benefits of vertical integration.