SiliconAuto is a joint venture between carmaker Stellantis and electronics manufacturer Foxconn (Hon Hai), set up to design and sell semiconductors for the automotive industry. Announced in June 2023 as an equally owned company headquartered in the Netherlands, it was planned to start supplying chips to Stellantis, Foxconn and other customers from 2026. This spotlight was first published in March 2024; a short update from the company's own website is added at the end.
Drive by Silicon, Auto the World.
Key facts
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Founders | Stellantis and Foxconn, 50/50 joint venture |
| Announced | June 2023, building on a December 2021 agreement between the two to develop chips for cars |
| Headquarters | The Netherlands |
| R&D offices | Bangalore, India and Taipei, Taiwan (as reported at the time of first publication) |
| Business model | Fabless: designs and sells chips, manufacturing is outsourced |
| Planned first supply | 2026 |
| Management | Executives drawn from both founding partners |
What SiliconAuto does
SiliconAuto tailors chips for the new generation of automotive vehicle platforms, with a particular focus on the computer-controlled features and modules needed in electric vehicles. Products from SiliconAuto are meant to support Stellantis' electrical/electronic and software architecture, STLA Brain, with full over-the-air updating, and to meet the future semiconductor needs of Stellantis, Foxconn and other customers. The aim is to support the rapid, software-defined transformation of Stellantis' vehicles, so that cars connect with customers' daily lives and keep gaining capabilities for years after production.
The joint venture expects to strengthen EV mobility through vertical integration and through the resources each partner brings, helping its customers compete. It is part of Stellantis' strategy to become a mobility technology company and to secure advanced chips for its next generation of electric vehicles.
Why a carmaker wants its own chip company
The 2021 to 2022 chip shortage cost the car industry millions of vehicles in lost production and showed how little control carmakers had over their semiconductor supply. At the same time, software-defined vehicles are moving from dozens of small electronic control units to a few powerful domain or zone controllers, which raises the value and complexity of the silicon inside each car. Owning part of a chip design house gives a carmaker three things:
- Supply security: a direct say in which chips are designed, where they are made and who gets priority.
- Architecture fit: chips designed around the carmaker's own E/E architecture and software stack rather than adapted from general products.
- Cost and differentiation: fewer layers between the carmaker and the silicon, and features that competitors cannot buy off the shelf.
Foxconn brings electronics manufacturing scale and its own EV ambitions. Stellantis brings vehicle volume and a defined platform roadmap. The combination is similar in spirit to the two companies' earlier Mobile Drive venture for smart cockpits, announced in 2021.
Where it fits in the industry
SiliconAuto is one of several moves by carmakers to get closer to their chips. Tesla designs its own driver assistance computer, several Chinese carmakers have in-house chip teams, and many European and Japanese groups have signed direct supply or co-development deals with chip makers. A joint venture is a middle path: the carmaker shares design cost and risk with a partner instead of building a full chip company alone. The challenge for any new automotive chip supplier is the long qualification cycle, including AEC-Q100 reliability testing and ISO 26262 functional safety work, which is why first products were planned three years after the 2023 announcement.
Update, November 2026
As of November 2026, SiliconAuto's website describes it as a fabless chip designer with Foxconn and Stellantis as strategic investors. It lists an automotive microcontroller (XMotiv M3), an AI accelerator for advanced driving, a camera SerDes for sensor links, and custom ASIC design services, and says it is extending its focus to robots and drones. We have not independently verified product availability or customer shipments.
FAQ
Who owns SiliconAuto?
Stellantis and Foxconn, in equal shares, according to the 2023 announcement.
Does SiliconAuto make its own chips?
No. It is a fabless company: it designs the chips and uses outside foundries to manufacture them.
When were its products due?
The joint venture said it expected to begin supplying the automotive industry from 2026.
References
- New Mobility News: SiliconAuto is the new joint venture of Stellantis and Foxconn (21 June 2023)
- Silicon Semiconductor: SiliconAuto, an automotive industry JV
- Stellantis press release via GlobeNewswire (PDF)
- Manufacturing Dive: Stellantis, Foxconn form SiliconAuto chip joint venture (22 June 2023)
- DIGITIMES report (21 June 2023)
- SiliconAuto company website
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