OpenAI & Samsung Forge Deeper Chip Ties

OpenAI is strengthening its partnership with Samsung Electronics, signaling a deeper cooperation in the development of next-generation chips and enterprise AI services. Harrison Kim, General Manager of OpenAI Korea, confirmed significant progress in joint production and research for future chips, though details remain undisclosed. He also highlighted Samsung Electronics as one of the largest global deployers of ChatGPT, with employees across R&D, marketing, and sales utilizing the tool.

This intensified collaboration follows OpenAI's June unveiling of its custom AI inference chip, Jalapeno, designed with Broadcom. Last year, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix expressed intent to supply memory chips for OpenAI's Stargate data center project. OpenAI emphasizes the growing demand for memory chips due to advanced computing needs, making South Korean semiconductor suppliers a priority.

Meanwhile, Samsung is expanding its internal use of generative AI, allowing workers in its Device eXperience division to use tools like ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and Anthropic Claude. OpenAI reported a nearly 28-fold surge in ChatGPT Enterprise users at South Korean companies by the end of August compared to the previous year, indicating a broad adoption of AI across business functions. South Korea notably had the largest number of paying ChatGPT subscribers outside the U.S. late last year. The launch of GPT-6 Astra is expected to further accelerate AI adoption.