As per a report from Reuters, South Korea’s SK Telecom-backed AI chip startup Sapeon Korea and KT-invested startup Rebellions have officially announced their merger.

The combined entity is expected to be established by the end of 2024, with the merger projected to create a business valued at over KRW 1 trillion (roughly USD 750 million), hinting at a potential challenge to NVIDIA’s leading position in the AI chip market.

As competition in the AI chip market intensifies, Sapeon and Rebellions have formalized their merger. The merger, which was rumored in June according to the Korean Economic Daily, have now been officially agreed upon, with Rebellions’ co-founder and CEO Sunghyun Park set to lead the executive team of the merged entity.

Sapeon and Rebellions are two South Korean chip startups. Rebellions introduced the ATOM chip last year, Korea’s first NPU designed for large language model (LLM) data centers. Meanwhile, Sapeon launched its next-generation AI chip, the X330, in November, enhancing Korea’s competitiveness in the global AI semiconductor market.

The two companies previously noted that they view the next two to three years as a critical opportunity for South Korea to establish a presence in the global AI semiconductor market. Moreover, they also emphasized their commitment to accelerating the formation of the merged entity to capitalize on this pivotal period.

The report by TheElec, citing industry sources, noted that since SK Group will be the majority shareholder of the merged entity, it may prefer TSMC over Samsung Foundry, given that SK hynix and Samsung are rivals in memory chips. Currently, Sapeon uses TSMC as its foundry, whereas Rebellions collaborates with Samsung Foundry.

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• [News] Korea’s First Semiconductor Unicorn in the Making: AI Chip Firms Sapeon and Rebellions Set to Merge

(Photo credit: Rebellions)

After forming a new HBM development team within its Device Solutions (DS) Division around July, memory Giant Samsung is now said to have made progress on HBM4, targeting to tape-out the product by the end of this year, a report by TheElec notes. The move is also regarded to be laying the foundation stone for the mass production of its 12-layer HBM4 product by the end of 2025, according to the report.

The report suggests that as the time span between tape-out and finalizing test products might take three to fourth months, Samsung’s HBM4 test products are expected to be released next year at the earliest. Afterwards, Samsung would continue to make improvements until sending samples to key customers.

Samsung, however, declined to comment on its roadmap, according to TheElec.

The report by TheElec further notes that starting from HBM4, Samsung plans to mass-produce the logic die of HBM on its 4nm foundry process. Regarding the memory chip, Samsung is said to adopt the 10nm 6th-generation (1c) DRAM.

Samsung’s major HBM competitor, SK hynix, is reported to enter mass production for its 12-layer HBM4 in the second half of 2025, the report indicates. The company plans to mass-produce the logic die of HBM with TSMC’s 5nm and 12nm processes. As for the memory chip, it is still weighing between 1b DRAM and 1c DRAM.

As Samsung plans to use 1c DRAM in HBM4 core chips, related investments are expected to follow. TrendForce reports that Samsung’s P4L facility will be the key site for expanding memory capacity starting in 2025, starting with NAND production. Equipment installation for DRAM is expected to begin in mid-2025, with mass production of 1c nanometer DRAM slated to commence in 2026.

Samsung’s fifth generation HBM, HBM3e, is still striving on the certification process with NVIDIA. TrendForce notes that as the company is eager to gain higher HBM market share from SK hynix, its 1alpha(1α) capacity has reserved for HBM3e. TrendForce believes that Samsung is going to be a very important supplier on HBM category.

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• [News] Samsung Reportedly to Bring in High-NA EUV Machine as soon as Year-End, as SK hynix Targets 2026
• [News] Samsung Likely Emerges as the Pacemaker for the AI Market if It Secures HBM3e Supply to NVIDIA

(Photo credit: Samsung)

On August 13, Google officially released the Pixel 9 series of smartphones, featuring Google’s latest self-developed Tensor G4 processor and advanced AI function supported by Gemini AI.

Google Pixel 9 series includes three full-screen smartphones: Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro, and Pixel 9 Pro XL, as well as a foldable smartphone, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold.

Both Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro are equipped with 6.3-inch screens, with the Pixel 9 Pro using a better LTPO screen; Pixel 9 Pro XL is fitted with a 6.8-inch screen; Pixel 9 Pro Fold’s internal screen size increased from 7.6 inches to 8 inches, and the external display screen size from 5.8 inches to 6.3 inches.

The base memory capacity of the new phones is up to 12GB, with the two Pro models and the Pixel 9 Pro Fold offering 16GB of memory.

It is learned that the Tensor G4 adopted in Google’s new phones is based on Samsung’s 4nm process (4LPP+), boasting a 3.1GHz Arm Cortex-X4 super core, three 2.6GHz Arm Cortex-A720 large cores, and four 1.92GHz Arm Cortex-A520 small cores.

Moreover, Tensor G4 is equipped with the new Samsung Exynos Modem 5400 baseband chip (Outside the processor), supporting 4G/5G, WiFi-7, Bluetooth 5.x, and satellite connectivity. The memory used is LPDDR5X, and media decoding supports formats such as H.264, H.265, VP9, and AV1.

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• [News] Google’s Tensor G5 Reportedly Manufactured with TSMC’s 3nm and InFO-POP Packaging
• [News] Google Reportedly Shifts Orders from Samsung to TSMC for Its Upcoming Tensor G5 in the Pixel 10 Series

(Photo credit: Google)

As semiconductor giants, starting with Intel and TSMC, have been bringing in ASML’s High-NA EUV (high-numerical aperture extreme ultraviolet) equipment to accelerate the development in advanced nodes, the elite group has now reportedly been added two new members: Samsung and SK hynix.

According to the reports by Korean media outlet Sedaily and ZDNet, Samsung Electronics’ semiconductor (DS) division is said to bring in High-NA EUV equipment as early as the end of 2024. SK hynix’s High-NA equipment, which is expected to be applied to the mass production of advanced DRAM, will reportedly be introduced in 2026.

Samsung to Introduce First High-NA EUV Machine as soon as Year-End, Eyeing Full Commercialization by 2027

Sedaily, citing industry sources on August 13^th, notes that Samsung is expected to begin bringing in its first High-NA EUV equipment, ASML’s EXE:5000, between the end of this year and the first quarter of next year. It is worth noting that Samsung’s first High-NA EUV equipment is likely to be used for foundry operations, the report reveals.

Among the semiconductor heavyweights which have been advancing in the foundry business, Intel is the first to order new High-NA EUV machines from ASML. In May, Intel was said to have secured its first batch of the new High-NA EUV lithography equipment from ASML, which the company will allegedly use on its 18A (1.8nm) and 14A (1.4nm) nodes.

TSMC, on the other hand, is more concerned on the new machine’s expensiveness, as it might be priced at as much as EUR 350 million (roughly USD 380 million) per unit, according to a previous report by Bloomberg. However, the report, citing ASML’s spokesperson, confirmed that the Dutch chip equipment giant will ship High-NA EUV equipment to TSMC by the end of this year.

Now, following its two major rivals in the foundry sector, Samsung, by introducing High-NA EUV equipment as soon as year-end, aims to boost its competitive edge in the advanced nodes.

As the installation process is quite time-consuming, Samsung aims for the full commercialization of High-NA by 2027, supported by its efforts to build the related ecosystem, the report says.

According to the report, Samsung is working with electronic design automation (EDA) companies to design new types of masks, including curved (curvilinear) circuits for High-NA EUV that improve the sharpness of the printed circuits on wafers. This collaboration includes companies like Synopsys, a global leader in semiconductor EDA tools.

SK hynix’s High-NA EUV Reportedly to be Applied to 0a DRAM Production

According to the report by Sedaily, ASML has produced eight EXE:5000 High-NA EUV units currently, as Intel has the lion’s share by securing multiple units. Samsung is said to be the last customer to place the order for ASML’s first batch of units.

On the other hand, SK hynix, Samsung’s major rival in the memory sector, is reported to bring in ASML’s next generation of High-NA EUV machine, the EXE:5200, in 2026, ZDNet suggests.

Citing industry sources on August 16th, ZDNet notes that the HBM giant has been expanding the personnel dedicated to High-NA EUV development within the company.

Although specific plans, such as the fab where the equipment will be installed or the direction of additional investment, have not been disclosed, it is expected that the technology could be applied to mass production in 0a (single-digit nanometer) DRAM as early as possible, the report indicates.

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• News] TSMC Reportedly Invests over USD 12.3 Billion in EUV, Advancing in 2nm Production
• [News] Intel Secures First Batch of High-NA EUV Equipment from ASML, Ahead of Samsung and SK Hynix

(Photo credit: ASML)

As global tech giants race to develop AI infrastructure, according to a report from Yonhap News Agency, South Korea’s top 500 companies, driven by semiconductor leaders like Samsung and SK Hynix, have experienced a significant profit surge in the second quarter, more than doubling compared to the same period last year.

Reportedly, as per data released by the corporate evaluation website CEO Score on August 15th, among South Korea’s top 500 companies by revenue, 334 companies have reported their second-quarter earnings as of August 14th.

The combined net profit of these companies reached KRW 59.4 trillion (approximately USD 43.6 billion), marking a 107.1% increase compared to the KRW 28.7 trillion recorded during the same period last year, with their profits more than doubling year-over-year.

Their revenue in total, on the other hand, amounted to KRW 779.5 trillion, reflecting a 7% year-on-year growth from KRW 728.6 trillion during the same period last year.

This significant growth was driven by the booming HBM demand from tech giants like NVIDIA, the report notes.

According to the Q2 performance report released by Samsung Electronics, the company’s operating profit reached KRW 10.44 trillion (approximately USD 7.5 billion), surging from the KRW 668.5 billion recorded in the same period last year.

Thus, per the report, this surge has solidified Samsung’s position as the most profitable company among South Korea’s top 500 enterprises in the second quarter.

On the other hand, SK Hynix also turned a profit in the second quarter, recovering from a loss of KRW 2.9 trillion  in the same period last year, with an operating profit of KRW 5.5 trillion.

Reportedly, this strong performance helped SK Hynix to become South Korea’s second most profitable company, surpassing automotive giants Hyundai Motor and Kia Corp., which reported operating profits of KRW 4.3 trillion and KRW3.6 trillion in Q2,  respectively.

Meanwhile, SK On, the battery manufacturing arm of SK Group, recorded an operating loss of KRW 460.2 billion in the second quarter, marking the worst quarterly performance in the company’s history, dragged down by the global cooling demand for electric vehicles.

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• [News] Korea’s Memory Exports to Taiwan Surge 225% in 1H 2024 Driven by Strong HBM Demand
• [News] Korean Semiconductor Exports Hit a New High, with Memory Shipment up by 88.7%

(Photo credit: Samsung)