Google is in discussions with Samsung Electronics to manufacture part of its next-generation artificial intelligence processor, according to a report by The Information. The talks signal a significant shift in how the world's biggest tech companies are scrambling to secure chip production capacity.
The chip in question is Google's Tensor Processing Unit, or TPU — custom silicon the company designs specifically to power AI workloads. According to Heise.de, Google's 10th-generation TPU, planned for around 2028, could be produced by both TSMC and Samsung, making it a dual-source manufacturing arrangement.
The driving force behind the Samsung talks is capacity, not preference. As MSN reported, TSMC is nearing its production limits, prompting Google to seek an alternative or supplementary foundry partner. Pandaily framed the development as part of a broader reshaping of global AI supply chains caused by the crunch.
SamMobile reported that Samsung could manufacture the chip component using its advanced 2-nanometer process technology — a cutting-edge fabrication node that Samsung has been working to commercialize and compete with TSMC on.
For Samsung's foundry division, landing a Google TPU order would be a significant win. The Korea Herald and theinvestor.co.kr both noted the talks are ongoing, and no deal has been confirmed. Samsung has long trailed TSMC in the contract chip-making business and has been actively courting major customers to close the gap.
This story matters because the race for AI chip production capacity has become a strategic bottleneck — one that is now forcing even the most TSMC-dependent companies to diversify their manufacturing bets, reshaping the balance of power in the global semiconductor industry.