Citrini analyst jukan: MediaTek reportedly locks in Meta as ASIC customer after TPU

Odaily Planet Daily News: Citrini analyst jukan posted on X platform, stating that supply chain sources indicate MediaTek has essentially secured its second ASIC customer beyond Google. If nothing unexpected happens, this customer will be Meta, as previously rumored. Per its usual practice, MediaTek does not publicly comment on individual products, customer situations, or market rumors. Qualcomm currently seems to hold key major clients such as Meta, Microsoft, and ByteDance, but industry insiders believe that MediaTek is not at a disadvantage as it deepens its cooperation with Google and has the opportunity to lock in a second customer. According to semiconductor supply chain sources, based on the order prospects and generational transition pace of AI data centers and ASIC products from major cloud service providers, Google remains the most proactive and aggressive key client. MediaTek not only has two product codenames, Zebrafish and Humufish, but market information and industry insiders familiar with ASICs have confirmed that its participation in the v9 generation Triggerfish is almost certain. This implies that from late 2026 through 2028, and even extending to 2029, MediaTek can stably generate revenue from TPU mass production. Compared to Qualcomm's proposed 2029 cloud AI revenue target of $15 billion, MediaTek, holding multiple TPU ASIC orders, is only a matter of time before reaching the $10 billion level. The industry is also watching whether MediaTek can smoothly secure a second key cloud service provider as a major client. Combining earlier market information and recent supply chain confirmations, MediaTek is still actively cooperating with Meta on ASIC products, with the collaboration likely centered on AI accelerator chips. Meta has recently partnered with both Arm and Qualcomm, but those related products are aimed at CPUs. For its self-developed AI accelerator chips, there have been no clearer collaboration announcements. IC design industry insiders note that Meta’s recent cloud AI development strategy has indeed been relatively chaotic and unclear, with its internal chip development plans undergoing multiple adjustments. Even in the CPU domain, it has sought multiple partners and adopted different approaches. Regarding AI accelerator chips, although Meta has previously formally announced its cooperation plan with Broadcom, supply chain sources indicate this has not interrupted the ongoing cooperation plans between MediaTek and Meta. IC design industry insiders also emphasize that the cloud AI development roadmaps of MediaTek and Qualcomm remain distinctly different. MediaTek is concentrating all its resources on the ASIC business, while Qualcomm plans to advance both customization and standardization simultaneously, covering both AI accelerator chips and CPU product directions.