Samsung has set its roadmap to 2026 as competition intensifies in AI chips, advanced manufacturing and premium devices.

The closed-door talks follow a major leadership reshuffle, with Roh Tae-moon and Jun Young-hyun newly installed as co-CEOs overseeing consumer devices and semiconductors.

While executive chair Lee Jae-yong is not attending directly, he is expected to be briefed after returning from the US, where he reportedly held high-level discussions with Tesla chief Elon Musk and AMD CEO Lisa Su.

Those meetings highlight Samsung’s central focus in becoming a more critical supplier in the AI supply chain.

The company is pushing hard into high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and custom AI chips, aiming to serve hyperscalers such as Amazon and Meta as well as traditional GPU players.

Analysts expect Samsung to allocate around 60% of its HBM output in 2026 to custom ASIC customers, though it is still finalising certification of its latest HBM4 chips for Nvidia, after rival SK hynix moved first.

Foundry manufacturing is another major pillar. Samsung is preparing to start production in 2026 at its US$37 billion Taylor, Texas facility using its advanced 2-nanometre process.

The plant is central to its ambitions of closing the gap with TSMC, which dominates more than 70% of the global foundry market. Samsung currently holds about 8%.

Momentum has picked up after Samsung secured a US$16.5 billion contract to manufacture Tesla’s next-generation AI6 chip in Texas, and confirmation that it will also produce part of Tesla’s AI5 chips, originally slated for TSMC.

On the consumer side, Samsung is finalising plans for the Galaxy S26 smartphone family, expected to launch in February.

A key question is how widely the new Exynos 2600 processor, built on Samsung’s own 2nm technology, will be deployed, given ongoing yield challenges.

Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chips are expected to power most models globally.

Rising memory prices are also shaping discussions, with Samsung shifting to shorter-term pricing contracts even internally. The move could put upward pressure on flagship phone prices across the industry, including Apple’s iPhones in 2026.

Samsung is also planning to showcase new AI-powered TVs and home appliances at CES 2026, as it looks to differentiate itself from increasingly aggressive Chinese rivals.