Samsung's foundry business will not close its gap with TSMC through 2027, despite its $16.5 billion Tesla chip deal being widely cast as a turnaround.

TSMC's record 72.5% global market share in Q2 reflects overwhelming control of advanced AI chip manufacturing, and Samsung's path to catching up depends on its 2-nanometre yields, the rate of usable chips per silicon wafer, clearing roughly 70%, the level industry reports say is needed for reliable high-volume orders. Samsung's yields at its Texas plant remain near 55%, which already forced a six-month delay to Tesla's chips and pushed real output there into late 2027, meaning the deal will not translate to real market share recovery until 2028 at the earliest.