Samsung Electronics announced Tuesday that it has entered into a strategic partnership with French artificial intelligence firm Mistral AI to develop AI models purpose-built for semiconductor design and manufacturing.

The collaboration will center on building and deploying AI solutions across Samsung's semiconductor operations, covering chip design, manufacturing process optimization and engineering workflows. Under the agreement, Samsung plans to integrate Mistral AI's advanced language models into its semiconductor business and develop customized AI capabilities that can run within its own infrastructure.

On-premises AI systems have become increasingly important in the semiconductor industry, where companies must maintain control over sensitive design data, manufacturing processes and proprietary technologies. As semiconductor development grows more complex and production environments generate ever-larger volumes of data, AI-driven analysis and automation are emerging as critical tools for improving efficiency and competitiveness. Samsung intends to apply tailored AI models throughout its semiconductor operations, spanning engineering, design and manufacturing processes. The move places Samsung within a broader industry trend: chipmakers and design-tool vendors alike have been embedding AI into semiconductor workflows, with companies such as Synopsys and Cadence marketing AI-assisted chip design software and Nvidia offering computational lithography tools aimed at accelerating manufacturing development.

The partnership comes as Mistral AI expands its position as one of Europe's leading AI companies. Founded in France in 2023, Mistral AI develops open-weight AI models that enable organizations to deploy and customize AI systems within their own environments. Sovereign AI — an approach that lets organizations retain control over their data, models and computing infrastructure — is a core pillar of the company's strategy. Mistral AI currently supports AI transformation efforts for more than 125 global companies, including Airbus, ASML and HSBC, and operates across 20 countries.

"Increasing complexities involved in AI chip design and manufacturing require continuous innovation in semiconductor technologies," said Jun Young-hyun, vice chairman and head of the device solutions division at Samsung Electronics. "We look forward to working with Mistral and supporting the evolving needs of customers, while delivering new breakthroughs across the semiconductor ecosystem essential to the AI era."

The partnership follows Samsung Electronics' participation as a lead investor in Mistral AI's most recent Series D funding round, further deepening the two companies' strategic relationship. Mistral AI raised 3 billion euros ($3.5 billion) in the round, which valued the company at more than 21 billion euros — the largest equity funding round by a private European technology company since its founding in 2023. The investor list also connects Samsung with ASML — a key supplier of lithography equipment to the semiconductor industry — and Nvidia, whose GPUs underpin much of the AI computing that Samsung's memory business also serves.

Samsung Electronics, EQT's Scale-Up Europe Fund and existing investor PSG Equity led the funding, with participation from major technology and institutional investors including ASML, Nvidia, Andreessen Horowitz, Bpifrance, General Catalyst and funds managed by BlackRock. Mistral AI plans to use the investment to expand AI model research and development, strengthen computing capabilities, invest in infrastructure and accelerate global growth.

"AI is reshaping how we build complex technologies, from silicon to software," said Arthur Mensch, co-founder and CEO of Mistral AI. "We are proud to support Samsung Electronics with our expertise in electronics and semiconductors, helping to improve how chips are designed and manufactured, and to accelerate technical progress across the global semiconductor and AI value chain."