According to a report from Bloomberg, the US is reportedly considering new measures and could unilaterally impose restrictions on China as early as late August. These measures would limit China’s access to AI memory and related equipment capable of producing them.

Moreover, another report from Reuters further indicates that US allies, including semiconductor equipment manufacturers from Japan, the Netherlands, and South Korea—such as major Dutch semiconductor equipment maker ASML and Tokyo Electron—will not be affected in their shipments. The report also notes that countries whose exports will be impacted include Israel, Taiwan, Singapore, and Malaysia. 

Bloomberg, citing sources, revealed that the purpose of these measures is to prevent major memory manufacturers like Micron, SK hynix, and Samsung Electronics from selling high-bandwidth memory (HBM) to China.

These three companies dominate the global HBM market. Reportedly, regarding this matter, Micron declined to comment, while Samsung and SK hynix did not immediately respond to requests for comment. 

Bloomberg’s source also emphasized that the US has yet made a final decision. The source also state that if implemented, the new measures would cover chips such as HBM2, HBM3, and HBM3e, as well as the equipment needed to manufacture these chips.

The source further revealed that Micron will essentially not be affected by the new regulations, as Micron stopped exporting HBM to China after China banned Micron’s memory from being used in critical infrastructure in 2023.

Reportedly, it is still unclear what methods the US will use to restrict South Korean companies. One possibility is the Foreign Direct Product Rule (FDPR). Under this rule, if a foreign-made product uses any US technology, even just a small amount, the US can impose restrictions.

Both SK hynix and Samsung are said to be relying on chip design software and equipment from US companies such as Cadence Design Systems and Applied Materials.

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• [News] U.S. Reportedly Enhancing Chip Export Restrictions to China, while NVIDIA’s H20 Might Get Banned
  
• [News] China-US Chip War Escalated as YMTC Sues Micron for Patent Infringement

(Photo credit: SK hynix)

To jointly promote the development of Hong Kong’s microelectronics industry, Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation and MassPhoton (Hong Kong) held a launch ceremony for Hong Kong’s first ultra-high vacuum “Third-Generation Semiconductor Gallium Nitride Epitaxial Wafer Pilot Line” on July 30.

Reportedly, MassPhoton will move into the newly established Microelectronics Center (MEC) to build Hong Kong’s first 8-inch gallium nitride (GaN) epi-wafer pilot line.

According to reports from media like China News Service, MassPhoton plans to invest at least HKD 200 million in Hong Kong to establish the region’s first global R&D center for third-generation semiconductor GaN epitaxial processes in the Hong Kong Science Park. The center will develop an advanced 8-inch GaN epi-wafer process and equipment platform for the production of GaN optoelectronic and power devices.

In addition, MassPhoton will set up Hong Kong’s first ultra-high vacuum production GaN epi-wafer pilot line in the Innovation Park for small-scale production.

The pilot line is expected to be completed, followed by the construction of a GaN epi-wafer mass production line in Hong Kong, creating over 250 microelectronics-related jobs, including epi-wafer and equipment design, production process development, and more, thereby generating substantial economic value.

Currently, the global semiconductor industry is developing rapidly, simultaneously boosting the GaN market size. According to a previous TrendForce’s report, the global GaN power device market is expected to grow from USD 180 million in 2022 to USD 1.33 billion in 2026, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of up to 65%.

Against this backdrop, Hong Kong has prioritized the development of third-generation semiconductor as a key technology field in recent years. For instance, in May 2024, the Finance Committee of the Hong Kong Legislative Council approved a significant investment of HKD 2.83 billion to establish the “Hong Kong Microelectronics R&D Center,” focusing on third-generation semiconductor technologies.

This plan includes setting up a pilot production line equipped with a broad range of critical tools such as I-line lithography equipment, photoresist development tools, high-temperature ion implanters, high-temperature annealing furnaces, and thin-film tools.

Sun Dong, Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, introduced that the government is actively promoting the development of microelectronics industry, and the Hong Kong Microelectronics R&D Institute will be established within the year, accompanying the construction of a SiC pilot line and a GaN pilot line.

The goal is to assist startups and SMEs in trial production, testing, and certification, fostering collaboration across industry, academia, and research in core technologies of third-generation semiconductor industry.

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• [News] Foundry Giant GlobalFoundries Acquired GaN-Related IP
• [News] Over 350 China’s Semiconductor Industry Projects Thriving in 2023

(Photo credit: Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation)

NVIDIA’s next-generation Blackwell architecture AI superchip is about to ship. According to a report from Commercial Times, on July 29 during the SIGGRAPH conference in Denver, USA, NVIDIA announced a series of software updates and revealed that samples of the new AI chip architecture Blackwell have been distributed, sparking optimism about the company’s continued record-breaking performance.

Industry sources cited by the report have indicated that the Blackwell series is regarded by Jensen Huang as the most successful product in history. It is expected to drive a new wave of AI server data center construction by cloud service providers (CSPs).

The report notes further that in addition to TSMC’s 4nm process being in high demand, the increasing penetration of water cooling technology, which is projected to reach up to 10%, is likely to benefit Cooling Distribution Unit suppliers such as Vertiv, as well as companies like Asia Vital Components, AURAS Technology, Delta Electronics, and Cool IT.

Furthermore, the new AI superchip is expected to start shipping to clients in the fourth quarter, with full-scale production set for 2025. Assembly plants will also benefit, including Wistron, Foxconn (through its subsidiary Ingrasys), which are involved in front-end manufacturing of substrates, computing boards, and switch boards.

Companies such as Wiwynn, Quanta (Quanta Cloud Technology), Inventec, GIGABYTE, ASUS, and ASRock are also expected to see increased orders for their rack-mounted systems. Among these, Quanta, Wiwynn, and Inventec have indicated that their related products are expected to start shipping in the fourth quarter, with further increases in volume anticipated in the first half of next year.

The NVIDIA Blackwell platform is set to become the main solution for NVIDIA’s high-end GPUs. TrendForce estimates that GB200 NVL36 shipments are expected to reach 60,000 units in 2025, with Blackwell GPU usage between 2.1 to 2.2 million units, making Blackwell the mainstream platform and accounting for over 80% of NVIDIA’s high-end GPUs.

TrendForce observes that the GB200 NVL36 architecture will initially utilize a combination of air and liquid cooling solutions, while the NVL72, due to higher cooling demands, will primarily employ liquid cooling.

Read more

• [News] NVIDIA Reportedly Developing Tailored Version of the Blackwell Series for Chinese Market
• [News] NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang Estimates Blackwell Chip Price Around USD 30,000 to USD 40,000

(Photo credit: NVIDIA)

In addition to the strong memory momentum which contributes to Samsung’s soaring profits in the second quarter, the tech giant’s progress on the foundry and chip business also attracts attention. According to its press release on July 31st, Samsung expects its foundry revenue growth to outpace the market in 2024 on the back of the full-scale mass production of second-generation 3nm GAA technology.

Earlier in May, Samsung announced the tape-out of its first 3nm mobile SoC, which used the Synopsys.ai EDA suite to verify the design. It signifies a major milestone as it is the first smartphone AP taped out with its 3nm GAA process. Before that, Samsung’s SF3E node has only been utilized for cryptocurrency mining chips.

The Korean semiconductor heavyweight now notes that the initial response to the new SoC for wearables, which features the industry’s first 3nm technology, has been favorable, and adoption of 3nm SoCs by key customers is expected to expand in the second half of the year. It also plans to ensure a stable supply of the Exynos 2500 for flagship models.

It is worth noting that another focus for Samsung in 2H24 will be the expansion for the application of 200-megapixel sensors from main wide camera to tele cameras. Samsung states it plans to expand sales of DDI products with the start of mass production of new models for a customer based in the US. According to an earlier report by The Verge, Apple may begin using Samsung camera sensors as early as 2026, ending Sony’s decade-long role as the exclusive supplier of the phone’s camera sensors.

Samsung also draws an ambitious roadmap, saying that it will expand its order intake for AI and HPC applications, targeting a fourfold increase in the customer base and a ninefold increase in sales by 2028 from the levels in 2023.

Samsung announced its financial results for the second quarter today, posting KRW 74.07 trillion in consolidated revenue and operating profit of KRW 10.44 trillion (approximately USD 7.5 billion). Its DS Division posted KRW 28.56 trillion in consolidated revenue and KRW 6.45 trillion in operating profit for the second quarter, posting a 94% and 1081% YoY growth, respectively.

Its Foundry Business saw improved earnings as a result of increased demand across applications. Due to higher orders for sub-5nm technology, the number of AI and HPC customers increased twofold from a year earlier. The Foundry Business also distributed the process development kit (PDK) for 2nm Gate-All-Around (GAA) technology to customers ahead of mass production in 2025.

On July 9^th, Samsung confirmed that it has received the first client for its 2nm process, and will provide turnkey semiconductor solutions using the 2nm process and the advanced 2.5D packaging technology Interposer-Cube S (I-Cube S) to Japanese AI company Preferred Networks.

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• [News] Samsung’s Q2 Profits Soar to USD 7.5 Billion, Seeing Strong Demand for HBM, DDR5 and Server SSD in 2H24
• [News] Samsung Officially Secures Its First 2nm Order, Making AI Chips for Preferred Networks

(Photo credit: Samsung)