Anthropic asked SK Hynix for supplies to make its own chips

Anthropic has requested supplies from SK Hynix to produce its own semiconductors, SK Group chairman Chey Tae-won revealed at an AI event in San Francisco on Friday, a disclosure that confirms the AI developer is moving from planning to execution on in-house chip development.

From AI Models to Custom Silicon

Chey made the remarks while sharing a stage with Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei and other technology executives during South Korean President Lee Jae Myung's visit to Silicon Valley on July 24-25. He described it as "remarkable" that an AI developer would have its own chip ambitions.bloomberg+2

The disclosure came as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix unveiled major chip supply agreements with U.S. technology companies during the presidential visit, deals that a senior South Korean official said involved "very large" sums. The announcements included long-term memory chip supply contracts and strategic investment partnerships.bloomberg+2

A Growing Trend Among AI Companies

Anthropic joins Google Alphabet Inc. ↗ 2.00%, Amazon Amazon.com, Inc. ↘ 1.74%, and Meta ↘ 1.97% in pursuing custom chip development, as AI companies seek to reduce reliance on external suppliers amid a persistent global shortage of computing power. Reports of Anthropic's in-house chip program first surfaced in April 2026, with efforts encompassing both ASICs and GPUs.moomoo

The company had previously announced a $50 billion investment plan for data centers, and the direct supply request to SK Hynix suggests the chip program has advanced beyond the design phase. Samsung and SK Hynix also took strategic stakes in Anthropic earlier this year as part of a $65 billion funding round that valued the company at $965 billion.koreaherald+1

Semiconductor Shortage Intensifies

Chey has warned that the AI-driven semiconductor shortage will worsen, projecting chip demand to rise 60 to 100 percent next year. SK Group has committed to investing 1,100 trillion won to expand semiconductor supply, with SK Hynix leading the effort through expanded production facilities. The chipmaker recently listed on Nasdaq through American Depositary Receipts in what became the largest-ever first-time U.S. share sale by a foreign company.reuters+3

The convergence of AI developers building their own chips while simultaneously inking massive supply deals with memory makers underscores the scale of demand that existing infrastructure cannot yet meet.