Tesla AI5 shown with SK hynix DRAM surrounding the main die
Tesla CEO Elon Musk says the company has taped out its next AI chip, called AI5. In the same post, Musk also said AI6 and Dojo3 are already in development. Tesla was designing AI5 as its fifth-generation AI chip for self-driving systems, while AI6 is planned as the follow-up generation.
Tesla’s naming has shifted over time. The older chips were known as HW2 through HW4, and now the next one is being called AI5. This is effectively the successor to HW4. The chip has twelve SK hynix DRAM chips around the compute die. I’m not sure what type of memory this is, but it looks like LPDDR5X.
Congrats to the @Tesla_AI chip design team on taping out AI5!
AI6, Dojo3 & other exciting chips in work. pic.twitter.com/hm54TdIzBx
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 15, 2026
Reuters reported in March that AI5 is mainly optimized for AI edge compute in Robotaxi and Optimus, while Tesla still expects to keep ordering NVIDIA chips at scale for other workloads. Musk earlier said Tesla could tape out AI6 in December 2026, with Samsung planning production on its 2 nm process in the second half of 2027.
For Tesla, the tape-out milestone is the main part of this update. It means the chip design has reached the stage where it can be sent to a foundry for manufacturing. The photo gives the first public look at the package, but Tesla has not published full specifications, process details, or confirmed product deployment timing in vehicles.
Source: Elon Musk
