Meta Platforms is speeding up its push to build its own artificial-intelligence chips, and investors are cheering. According to a report cited by MSN, Meta shares climbed nearly 7.5% to $677.9 after news that the company plans to manufacture a custom AI chip code-named Iris, working with partners Broadcom and TSMC to boost its computing power.
The timing is aggressive. CXOToday reports that Meta aims to begin chip production as soon as September, while the MSN report frames it as production that could start this year. WION goes further, reporting that Meta intends to release a new AI chip every six months — a cadence designed to reduce the company's heavy reliance on Nvidia, the dominant supplier of AI processors.
The chip push is part of a broader wave of AI announcements. CNBC reports that Meta's stock was heading for its best week since early 2024 as optimism built around its AI strategy, including the release this week of two models in a new "Muse Spark" family developed under the leadership of Alexandr Wang. CXOToday notes the launch of a Muse Spark 1.1 model.
Notably, the news did not rattle Nvidia. According to MSN, Nvidia's stock actually rose, shrugging off Meta's plans to start making an in-house chip from September.
Why it matters: if Meta can reliably design and produce its own AI chips, it could lower the enormous cost of running AI systems and loosen the grip that a single supplier holds over the industry's most critical hardware.