Nvidia Invests $3.5B in MediaTek to Embed Itself in Big Tech's Custom AI Chips

Nvidia has announced a $3.5 billion investment in Taiwan's MediaTek, one of the world's largest mobile chip makers. Under the deal, MediaTek will adopt NVLink Fusion — the technology that links servers into a unified network inside Amazon, Google, and Microsoft data centers. MediaTek already expects $2 billion in data center revenue in 2026.

1Why Big Tech Makes Its Own Chips — and Why Nvidia Doesn't Mind

Amazon, Google, and Microsoft have long been developing their own AI accelerators — Trainium, TPU, Maia — to reduce dependence on Nvidia. But this deal reveals a different logic: Nvidia is deliberately embedding itself inside the custom chip ecosystem. Even when the processor isn't made by Nvidia, the server infrastructure still runs on its stack — NVLink Fusion becomes a mandatory layer.

2What Changes for the AI Hardware Market

The 'become the infrastructure' strategy — not competing with custom chips, but making them dependent on you — may prove more durable than direct confrontation. AWS is already deploying an additional 2 million Nvidia GPUs while simultaneously using MediaTek to build specialized chips for specific workloads. The line between 'own hardware' and 'Nvidia hardware' is blurring.