Samsung Boosts DRAM Supply Fourfold to Tesla in Tight Market

Samsung’s memory business is seeing a massive earnings boost as global chip demand continues to surge. The company has reportedly quadrupled its DRAM supply to Tesla, one of its key customers. It looks like the carmaker wants to secure enough chips for its autonomous driving technology.

Samsung ramps up 8Gb GDDR6 DRAM output for Tesla

According to a report from Edaily, Samsung has increased its supply of 8Gb GDDR6 DRAM to Tesla, with the changes taking effect this month. The supply level is now four times higher than in the first quarter of 2026. As a result, the Korean firm has ramped up production of 8Gb GDDR6 DRAM at its Hwaseong campus.

An industry official said that in January 2026, Tesla requested a supply increase of more than 5 times the scheduled volume. Samsung has now agreed to increase shipments, though the volume still falls short of Tesla’s full demand. This shows that big tech companies are suffering from shortages of memory chips.

While the firms usually take preemptive measures, the skyrocketing chip prices have worsened the situation. The market research firm TrendForce reported that the spot price of 8GB GDDR6 reached $12.335 (as of April 13). This is more than 4 times the price of $2.846 in October 20, 2025.

Samsung’s decision to increase DRAM supply to Tesla is likely the result of their strong business relationship. Tesla is also an important customer for the Korean firm’s foundry unit. Last year, the two companies reached a deal worth $16.5 billion to make the carmaker’s AI6 chips. Samsung will also manufacture part of Tesla’s AI5 chips at its Taylor facility.

Meanwhile, Samsung has stopped accepting new orders for LPDDR4 and LPDDR4X, signaling the gradual phase-out of the widely used memory standards. The company will continue making these chips only to fulfill existing orders. After that, it plans to shift its manufacturing lines to newer memory products.