Amazon is developing its own chips for TVs, tablets, and gadgets

Amazon intends to create its own processors for televisions, tablets, and other consumer gadgets. The company believes that proprietary chips are the only way to ensure optimal support for AI features that Amazon embeds across its entire device lineup.

Why Amazon needs its own hardware

Amazon's expansion into silicon development began long before the current AI boom. The cloud business AWS has long operated on proprietary ARM chips: Graviton for server computing (fourth generation launched in 2023), Inferentia — for cost-effective deployment of trained neural networks, Trainium — for training large language models. Vertical integration has allowed AWS to offer AI inference significantly cheaper than on servers with NVIDIA accelerators.

The idea of applying the same logic to consumer devices seems straightforward. Universal processors from MediaTek and Qualcomm, which currently power Fire tablets and Fire TV, are not optimized for Amazon's specific tasks: local voice processing for Alexa, content personalization in Prime Video, fast object recognition by camera. A proprietary chip allows optimizing these scenarios at the silicon level itself.

• AWS Graviton — ARM chips for cloud servers, 4th generation (2023)
• AWS Inferentia — specialized for AI inference, more cost-effective than GPUs
• AWS Trainium — for training neural networks
• Fire tablets and Fire TV — currently run on MediaTek and Qualcomm chips
• Echo devices — already use variants of proprietary chip for voice processing

Why the smartphone failure didn't stop the program

Amazon is no stranger to risky hardware experiments. Fire Phone, unveiled in June 2014, came with the Firefly feature — object scanning for instant purchase on Amazon — and a 3D display with four front-facing cameras. The device failed to find buyers: within several months, the company recorded losses of about $170 million and halted phone production.

Nevertheless, the failure did not shut down the hardware program. Echo speakers with Alexa became one of the most widespread smart devices on the market, Fire TV consistently ranks in the top 3 streaming media players in the US, and budget Fire tablets hold their niche as affordable family devices priced from $50–70. Expanding the line of proprietary chips will continue that same logic: not fight for the flagship segment, but give mass-market devices an AI advantage.

What this means

Amazon is following a path already laid by Apple (A and M series chips), Google (Tensor in Pixel), and Samsung (Exynos): vertical integration of "processor + OS + services" allows extracting maximum performance under specific scenarios. If the company succeeds in bringing the cloud expertise of Trainium and Inferentia to the consumer level, Alexa and new AI features will gain fundamentally different performance — with the ability to process part of tasks locally, without constant appeals to the cloud. For users, this means faster response and less dependence on internet connection quality.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Amazon devices will get proprietary chips?

According to available information, the plans include televisions, tablets, and other consumer gadgets. The company has not yet disclosed specific models and release dates.

How does Amazon's approach differ from competitors?

Amazon is unique in combining cloud scale (AWS) with consumer devices: Graviton, Inferentia, and Trainium are already proven on real AI workloads of data centers, which allows transferring verified architecture to gadgets without starting from scratch.