OpenAI partners with Foxconn to build next-generation AI hardware

OpenAI has entered into a collaboration with Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. (Foxconn) to design and manufacture hardware for data centres in the United States, marking the latest move by the ChatGPT maker to expand the infrastructure required to support increasingly powerful AI systems, as per a report by Mint.

Under the partnership, Foxconn will work with OpenAI to co-design and develop server racks for data centres, strengthening the Taiwanese manufacturer’s operations across the US. The company will also produce cabling, power systems and other key components domestically. Both firms emphasised that the agreement does not include any binding purchase commitments.

“We’re announcing a collaboration with Hon Hai Technology Group (Foxconn) focused on design work and US manufacturing readiness for the next generation of AI infrastructure hardware,” OpenAI said in a statement. “As part of this work, OpenAI will share insight into emerging hardware needs across the AI industry to help inform Foxconn’s design and development efforts for hardware to be manufactured at Foxconn’s US facilities.”

The tie-up comes as OpenAI accelerates its investment in infrastructure. In recent months, the company has struck multibillion-dollar deals with chipmakers and cloud partners, including Nvidia and AMD, to expand its rapidly growing data centre footprint. It has also moved to tighten control over its supply chain, agreeing in October to buy chips and components from Broadcom—a spending trajectory that has prompted warnings of a potential AI bubble, according to Bloomberg.

For Foxconn, the partnership underscores its ambition to build a long-term presence in the AI ecosystem, reducing reliance on its longstanding role assembling iPhones for Apple. A direct line to OpenAI indicates the manufacturer’s intent to help customers integrate bespoke designs into AI-ready data centre infrastructure.

OpenAI has devoted much of the year to working with Oracle and SoftBank on an ambitious plan to invest $500 billion in US-based data centres and AI infrastructure—an initiative revealed shortly after President Donald Trump returned to office. Foxconn, already involved in the Stargate project, is ramping up its US manufacturing of AI servers to align with the administration’s priorities and mitigate tariff risks.

The scale of OpenAI’s long-term ambitions, however, remains vast. Altman has said the company intends to invest $1.4 trillion in AI infrastructure—an unprecedented commitment that raises questions about how partnerships like Foxconn’s will translate into tangible benefits for the manufacturer.