On July 15, 2026, reports surfaced indicating that Samsung Electronics is grappling with internal resource limitations as a result of the soaring demand for foundry services. In light of this, the company is contemplating outsourcing the back-end design of the input/output (I/O) die for Google's 10th-generation 2-nanometer Tensor Processing Unit (TPU), codenamed "Icefish". This TPU is specifically engineered to deliver computational support for artificial intelligence models, such as Gemini. The computational processor of the TPU will be crafted by TSMC utilizing a 1.4-nanometer process, whereas the I/O die, which is tasked with handling data transmission between the computational processor and high-bandwidth memory (HBM), will be fabricated by Samsung using a 2-nanometer process. At present, Samsung has initiated discussions with its design solution partners (DSPs) - AD Technology, Gaonchips, and Alphachips - to gauge their enthusiasm for taking on this project.

Historically, Samsung has independently managed the back-end design of Tesla's 2-nanometer autonomous driving chip. However, a recent uptick in 2-nanometer foundry orders has precipitated a shortage of internal resources. Apart from Google and Tesla, Samsung has also successfully onboarded two additional 2-nanometer foundry clients: Anthropic and DeepX. Industry experts have observed that TSMC's production capacity is approaching its limit, prompting some orders to be redirected towards Samsung.

AD Technology and Gaonchips emerge as the frontrunners for this outsourcing endeavor. Nevertheless, both entities have exhibited a lukewarm response, primarily due to their existing project schedules being fully occupied and the comparatively lower profit margins associated with back-end design services in contrast to full-custom application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) projects. Despite these challenges, both companies might still opt to undertake a portion of the business to accrue experience in high-end projects. Furthermore, Alphachips is vigorously pursuing this outsourcing prospect, perceiving it as a pivotal avenue for growth and development.