SEOUL, March 19 (Reuters) - Tesla CEO Elon Musk said on Thursday that the automaker may be able to "tape out", a stage when a chip design is finalised and sent to a factory for production, its next-generation AI6 chips in December.

Musk said last year that Samsung Electronics ( SSNLF ) would make the AI6 chips, likely to be used in self-driving cars and humanoid robots at Tesla' new factory in Taylor, Texas, after the Korean company clinched a $16.5 billion deal to supply artificial intelligence chips to the electric car maker.

"With some luck and acceleration using AI, we might be able to tape out AI6 in December," Musk said on his social media platform X, when asked when the chip would reach final design.

A Samsung executive said on Wednesday that it plans to produce Tesla chips, based on Samsung's advanced 2-nanomete process, in the second half of 2027.