OpenAI announced a new collaboration with Hon Hai Technology Group (Foxconn) focused on designing and preparing U.S.-based manufacturing for the next generation of AI infrastructure hardware. The agreement centers on early design work, production readiness, and supply chain expansion across Foxconn’s U.S. facilities.

While the initial partnership does not include purchase commitments or financial obligations, OpenAI will gain early access to evaluate the new systems and hold an option to purchase them in the future.

The companies frame this effort as a necessary step to support the rapidly increasing hardware demands of advanced AI models. As model capabilities scale, traditional data center equipment is struggling to keep pace—pushing the industry toward purpose-built high-performance compute (HPC) systems that are optimized for training, inference, and large-scale deployment.

The partnership is designed to reinforce the United States’ position in global AI leadership by building more of the physical infrastructure domestically. Combining OpenAI’s infrastructure roadmap of future model requirements with Foxconn’s manufacturing capabilities, the two companies aim to strengthen the availability, reliability, and security of AI hardware produced within the U.S.

This approach aligns with broader economic and policy goals around supply chain resilience, reduced dependency on overseas manufacturing, and faster deployment of large compute clusters for commercial, research, and national-scale applications.

OpenAI and Foxconn plan to co-design and develop several generations of AI data center racks in parallel, ensuring hardware evolves alongside rapidly advancing model needs.

The goal is to shorten time to deployment, secure future capacity, and ensure infrastructure is ready to support increasingly complex AI workloads.

The companies will work to broaden domestic sourcing, expand local testing and assembly, and redesign rack architecture so it can be manufactured more easily across Foxconn’s U.S. footprint.
This includes integrating a wider range of chipsets and suppliers—a move intended to improve reliability and build a more diversified and resilient American supply chain for AI.

Foxconn will manufacture essential data center elements in the U.S., including cabling, networking hardware, cooling infrastructure, and power delivery systems.

These components are fundamental to constructing high-performance compute clusters at scale, and building them domestically is expected to distribute economic benefits to U.S. workers, contractors, and manufacturers.

Foxconn Chairman Young Liu emphasized the opportunity to help accelerate AI innovation, calling OpenAI “a pioneer at the forefront of the AI digital age” and highlighting Foxconn’s role as the world’s largest producer of AI data servers.

“Foxconn is uniquely positioned to support OpenAI’s mission with trusted, scalable infrastructure that accelerates innovation and broadens access to transformative AI capabilities for businesses and users worldwide.” — Foxconn Chairman, Young Liu

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman framed the collaboration through the lens of economic renewal and national competitiveness:

“The infrastructure behind advanced AI is a generational opportunity to reindustrialize America. This partnership is a step toward ensuring the core technologies of the AI era are built here. We believe this work will strengthen U.S. leadership and help ensure the benefits of AI are widely shared.” — OpenAI CEO, Sam Altman

Q: Why are OpenAI and Foxconn partnering now?
A: AI models are scaling so quickly that traditional data center hardware can’t keep pace. OpenAI wants to influence the design of next-generation systems early, ensuring future racks, cooling systems, and networking equipment match the needs of advanced models like GPT. Foxconn brings the ability to build this hardware at U.S. scale.

Q: Does this agreement mean OpenAI is buying Foxconn hardware?
A: Not yet. There are no purchase commitments in the initial phase. However, OpenAI will have early access to evaluate systems and an option to purchase in the future.

Q: What makes this partnership important for the U.S.?
A: It directly supports domestic manufacturing, AI supply chain resilience, and reduced dependency on overseas production. These issues have become central to U.S. economic and national security planning.

Q: What components will Foxconn produce in the U.S.?
A: Key AI data center infrastructure, including:

These pieces form the backbone of high-performance compute clusters used to train and deploy modern AI models.

Q: How does this accelerate AI deployment?
A: By co-designing multiple generations of AI hardware, OpenAI and Foxconn aim to shorten rollout times and ensure capacity is ready for future models before they launch.

This collaboration reflects a growing industry shift: the next breakthroughs in AI depend as much on infrastructure and manufacturing geography as on model architecture. The race is no longer only about models—it’s about physical infrastructure, supply chain control, and domestic manufacturing capacity.

By investing early in U.S.-based production, OpenAI and Foxconn are helping establish a more resilient foundation for faster, safer, and more scalable deployment of advanced AI systems.

Strengthening domestic production could help the U.S. maintain its edge in high-performance computing while creating new opportunities for workers and suppliers across the country.

AI systems cannot advance—or remain safe, reliable, and affordable—without the physical infrastructure that powers them. Building more of that infrastructure in the U.S. affects everything from national competitiveness to the cost and availability of AI tools that businesses and consumers rely on every day.

Ultimately, the reliability of tomorrow’s AI systems will depend on the choices being made today about where and how their hardware foundations are built.

Editor’s Note: This article was created by Alicia Shapiro, CMO of AiNews.com, with writing, image, and idea-generation support from ChatGPT, an AI assistant. However, the final perspective and editorial choices are solely Alicia Shapiro’s. Special thanks to ChatGPT for assistance with research and editorial support in crafting this article.