Microsoft adjusts self-developed AI chip roadmap, third-generation AI-specific chip will be postponed until after 2028

Microsoft has postponed the release of its most ambitious self-developed AI chips, codenamed Braga-R and Clea, to 2028 or later, while postponing the Maia 200 chip to 2026 and shifting its focus to transitional design solutions. The company's chip development process has previously encountered delays.

Microsoft released its first self-developed AI chip Maia 100 last year, and originally planned that Maia 200 would be available in 2025. Due to challenges in design and manufacturing processes, the company has now postponed it to 2026. Its follow-up product "Braga" chip was only designed last month - six months later than originally planned, and the upgraded Braga-R chip will not be mass-produced until 2028.

The release time of the third-generation AI-specific chip Clea has been further postponed to after 2028. The delays have had a knock-on effect on Microsoft supplier Marvell Technologies (MRVL), which provides key chip components to Microsoft, and its stock price fell on the news.

Custom AI chips are a strategic lever for hyperscalers to optimize cost and performance, but the extended timeline could keep Microsoft at the mercy of Nvidia (NVDA) GPUs.

A slowdown in the rollout of in-house chips could hurt Microsoft's large-scale AI deployments and cede momentum to competitors like AMZN, which partnered with Marvell on its Trainium chip.

Microsoft is seeking to maintain progress in custom chips by replanning transitional designs for 2026 and beyond. But now the company is facing a critical balance between in-house innovation and third-party reliance.