Samsung wins $7B Meta AI chip order as 2nm backlog hits $34B

Samsung Electronics has secured a foundry order worth more than 10 trillion won from Meta, confirming its 2nm GAA process as a viable alternative to TSMC.

Meta has tapped Samsung Electronics to produce its next-generation MTIA AI accelerator chips using the 2-nanometer gate-all-around process, in an order valued at more than 10 trillion won ($7 billion) that strengthens Samsung's foundry ambitions against market leader TSMC.

The deal, reported by South Korean media on Friday, covers design and production of Meta's MTIA (Meta Training and Inference Accelerator) chips, with Samsung set to manufacture tens of thousands of units using its 2nm GAA (gate-all-around) process, according to people familiar with the matter.

Samsung's 2nm GAA node represents the industry's first use of gate-all-around transistor architecture, which delivers higher performance per watt compared with TSMC's FinFET-based N3 and upcoming N2 processes. The cumulative backlog across Samsung's foundry business is approaching 50 trillion won ($34 billion), reflecting growing demand from large technology companies seeking alternatives to sole-source dependency on TSMC.

The win comes as Samsung Foundry has struggled to gain market share against TSMC, which controls more than 60 percent of the global foundry market. This order could shift that dynamic, potentially adding 3 trillion won to 5 trillion won in annual revenue for Samsung's foundry division at peak production.

The Meta order is the largest single foundry win Samsung has disclosed since it began offering 2nm GAA samples in 2024. Meta's MTIA accelerator is designed to reduce the social media giant's reliance on Nvidia's H100 and B200 graphics processors for AI inference workloads, a strategy that has gained urgency as Nvidia's GPUs remain supply-constrained and priced at a premium.

Anthropic, the AI startup backed by Google, is also evaluating Samsung's 2nm process for a custom ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit), according to the report. If confirmed, it would mark the second major design win for Samsung's advanced node and further diversify the foundry's customer base beyond its traditional mobile-chip stronghold.

Samsung's 2nm GAA process uses nanosheet transistors that stack horizontally, allowing finer control of current leakage and higher energy efficiency than the FinFET architecture used by TSMC's current 3nm and upcoming 2nm nodes. The technology is critical for AI accelerators, which require maximum compute density within strict power budgets in data center environments.

The production timeline calls for initial risk production in the second half of 2026, with volume ramp expected in 2027, according to the report. Samsung is building dedicated 2nm capacity at its Pyeongtaek campus in South Korea, part of a broader 1,000 trillion won investment plan announced jointly with SK Hynix last week.

For investors, the Meta order provides the first concrete evidence that Samsung's foundry strategy is gaining traction beyond its traditional mobile and consumer electronics base. Samsung Electronics trades at about 1.5 times book value, a discount to TSMC's 5.5 times, reflecting the market's skepticism about Samsung's ability to close the technology gap. If Samsung can convert the 50 trillion won backlog into recurring revenue, the foundry business could add 8 trillion won to 10 trillion won in annual sales by 2029, narrowing the valuation gap with its Taiwanese rival.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.