Foxconn is working on a new collaboration with OpenAI, the world’s largest contract electronics manufacturer said on Friday, signaling a deeper push by both companies into the physical infrastructure behind the AI boom.
Foxconn Chairman Young Liu told reporters at the company’s annual Hon Hai Tech Day in Taipei that he had met OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman earlier in the day and that the two companies would make a formal announcement once details are confirmed, Reuters reported. Liu did not disclose the scope, timeline or financial terms of the proposed arrangement.
What Was Announced
Any new deal would build on an agreement the two companies struck in November 2025, under which Foxconn and OpenAI agreed to co-design and engineer data-center racks, components and other AI hardware, according to reporting on the event. Under that earlier arrangement, OpenAI agreed to share its infrastructure requirements to help Foxconn design multiple generations of AI data-center racks, while Foxconn planned to manufacture critical equipment, including networking, cabling, cooling and power systems, at its US facilities.
Importantly, the 2025 agreement carried no purchase commitments or financial obligations. OpenAI received early access to evaluate the hardware and an option to buy the systems. Whether the new phase converts those options into binding orders is the question markets will be watching, analysts noted.
No AI Bubble, Says Foxconn
Liu used the event to reject fears of an AI bubble and said Foxconn expects double-digit growth next year, pointing to durable demand for AI infrastructure. The confidence is backed by the company’s numbers: its cloud and networking segment, which includes AI servers, accounted for 51% of second-quarter revenue, the first time it crossed the 50% mark.
Foxconn, formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry, is Nvidia’s biggest AI server maker and holds about 40% of the global AI server market, a share it aims to lift to 45% in 2027. The company operates six factory buildings in Houston, Texas, where it manufactures AI servers for Nvidia, and Liu said further expansion would be needed there.
Why It Matters
The tie-up places Foxconn deeper inside the physical supply chain behind the expansion of AI services, where computing capacity depends on specialized servers, racks, networking equipment and manufacturing systems. For OpenAI, a closer Foxconn relationship offers a manufacturing partner with proven US production capacity at a moment when compute demand is outpacing supply across the industry. The Foxconn OpenAI collaboration would extend a relationship that began with the 2025 design agreement into a larger manufacturing role.
Foxconn is also leaning on vertical integration, with capabilities stretching from individual components to complete rack-scale systems, and it has begun testing humanoid robots at its Houston facilities. Presentation materials at the event showed Foxconn Industrial Internet introduced two wheeled robot models in October, according to reports.
The scope, value and timeline of the new OpenAI collaboration remain undisclosed. Liu said the companies would provide more information once the details are confirmed.
Sources
- Reuters via 947thebeast: Foxconn working on a new tie-up with OpenAI, says there is no AI bubble (Oct 30, 2026)
- Crypto Briefing: Foxconn plans OpenAI collaboration, dismisses AI bubble fears (Oct 30, 2026)
- Invezz: Foxconn dismisses AI bubble fears with fresh OpenAI partnership on cards (Oct 30, 2026)
- Urban Acres: Foxconn-OpenAI partnership to expand AI infrastructure (Oct 30, 2026)
