While introducing the industry’s first 48GB 16-high HBM3E at SK AI Summit in Seoul today, South Korean memory giant SK hynix has reportedly seen strong demand for its next-gen HBM. According to reports by Reuters and South Korean media outlet ZDNet, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang requested SK hynix to accelerate the supply of HBM4 by six months.

The information was disclosed by SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won earlier today at the SK AI Summit, according to the reports. In October, the company said that it planned to deliver the chips to customers in the second half of 2025, according to the reports.

When asked by ZDNet about HBM4’s accelerated timetable, SK hynix President Kwak Noh-Jung responded by saying “We will give it a try.”

A spokesperson for SK hynix cited by Reuters noted that this new timeline is quicker than their original target, but did not provide additional details.

According to ZDNet, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang also made his appearance in a video interview at the Summit, stating that by collaborating with SK hynix, NVIDIA has been able to achieve progress beyond Moore’s Law, and the company will continue to need more of SK hynix’s HBM in the future.

According to the third-quarter financial report released by SK hynix in late October, the company posted record-breaking figures, including revenues of 17.5731 trillion won, an operating profit of 7.03 trillion won (with an operating margin of 40%), and a net profit of 5.7534 trillion won (with a net margin of 33%) for the third quarter of this year.

In particular, HBM sales showed excellent growth, up more than 70% from the previous quarter and more than 330% from the same period last year.

SK hynix is indeed making strides in its HBM, as it started mass production of the world’s first 12-layer HBM3E product with 36GB in September. It has also been developing 48GB 16-high HBM3E in a bid to secure technological stability and plans to provide samples to customers early next year, according to the company’s press release.

On the other hand, according to another report by Business Korea, Kim Jae-jun, Vice President of the Memory Business Division, stated In the earnings call that the company is mass-producing and selling both HBM3E 8-stack and 12-stack products, and have completed key stages of the quality testing process for a major customer. Though Kim did not specify the identity of the major customer, industry analysts suggest it is likely NVIDIA.

To shorten the technology gap with SK hynix, Samsung is reportedly planning to produce the next-generation HBM4 products in the latter half of next year.

Read more

• [News] SK hynix Introduces World’s First 16-High HBM3E, Providing Samples in Early 2025
• [News] SK hynix Reportedly to Tape-out HBM4 in October, Paving the Way for NVIDIA’s Rubin

(Photo credit: NVIDIA)

South Korean memory giant SK hynix has introduced the industry’s first 48GB 16-high HBM3E at SK AI Summit in Seoul today, which is the world’s highest number of layers followed by the 12-high product, according to its press release.

According to SK hynix CEO Kwak Noh-Jung, though the market for 16-high HBM is expected to open up from the HBM4 generation, SK hynix has been developing 48GB 16-high HBM3E in a bid to secure technological stability and plans to provide samples to customers early next year, the press release noted.

In late September, SK hynix announced that it has begun mass production of the world’s first 12-layer HBM3E product with 36GB.

On the other hand, SK hynix is expected to apply Advanced MR-MUF process, which enabled the mass production of 12-high products, to produce 16-high HBM3E, while also developing hybrid bonding technology as a backup, Kwak explained.

According to Kwak, SK hynix’s 16-high products come with performance improvement of 18% in training, 32% in inference vs 12-high products.

Kwak Noh-Jung made the introduction of SK hynix’s 16-high HBM3E during his keynote speech at SK AI Summit today, titled “A New Journey in Next-Generation AI Memory: Beyond Hardware to Daily Life.” He also shared the company’s vision to become a “Full Stack AI Memory Provider”, or a provider with a full lineup of AI memory products in both DRAM and NAND spaces, through close collaboration with interested parties, the press release notes.

It is worth noting that SK hynix highlighted its plans to adopt logic process on base die from HBM4 generation through collaboration with a top global logic foundry to provide customers with best products.

A previous press release in April notes that SK hynix has signed a memorandum of understanding with TSMC for collaboration to produce next-generation HBM and enhance logic and HBM integration through advanced packaging technology. The company plans to proceed with the development of HBM4, or the sixth generation of the HBM family, slated to be mass produced from 2026, through this initiative.

To further expand the memory giant’s product roadmap, it is developing LPCAMM2 module for PC and data center, 1cnm-based LPDDR5 and LPDDR6, taking full advantage of its competitiveness in low-power and high-performance products, according to the press release.

The company is readying PCIe 6th generation SSD, high-capacity QLC-based eSSD and UFS 5.0.

As powering AI system requires a sharp increase in capacity of memory installed in servers, SK hynix revealed in the press release that it is preparing CXL Fabrics that enables high capacity through connection of various memories, while developing eSSD with ultra-high capacity to allow more data in a smaller space at low power.

SK hynix is also developing technology that adds computational functions to memory to overcome so-called memory wall. Technologies such as Processing near Memory(PNM), Processing in Memory(PIM), Computational Storage, essential to process enormous amount of data in future, will be a challenge that transforms structure of next-generation AI system and a future of AI industry, according to the press release.

Read more

• [News] SK hynix Q3 Profits Hit Record, AI-Driven HBM to Reach 40% of DRAM Revenue in Q4
• [News] SK hynix Reportedly to Tape-out HBM4 in October, Paving the Way for NVIDIA’s Rubin

(Photo credit: SK hynix)

As HBM has become a key battlefield for memory giants amid the AI wave, NAND chips with more layers, which are also ideal for high-capacity solid-state drives (SSDs) used in AI data centers, are in great demand as well. According to the latest report by the Korea Economic Daily, Samsung aims to introduce the 400-layer vertical NAND by 2026 to capture a leading position in the booming AI-driven storage market.

According to the Korean media outlet, following Samsung’s current mass production of its 286-layer V9 NAND flash chips, the company’s Device Solutions division is targeting the production of vertical NAND with a minimum of 400 stacked layers as early as 2026.

Samsung’s major rival, SK hynix, is also developing 400-layer NAND, aiming to get the technology ready for mass production by the end of 2025, according to a report by etnews in August. The current HBM leader reportedly eyes the full-scale production for the 400-layer NAND to begin in the first half of 2026, which is roughly similar to Samsung’s timetable.

Samsung Develops “Dream NAND for AI” to Boost Density Per Unit Area by 1.6 Times

The report by the Korea Economic Daily notes that in conventional NAND chips, memory cells are stacked above the peripheral circuitry, which acts as the chip’s brain. However, stacking beyond 300 layers has frequently caused damage to the peripheral.

Back in 2013, Samsung was the industry’s first to introduce V NAND chips with vertically stacked storage cells to maximize capacity, the report notes.

Now, to address the issue occurred, Samsung is reportedly developing its advanced 10th-generation V NAND (V10), in which it intends to use an innovative bonding technology where cells and the peripheral circuitry are manufactured separately on distinct wafers before being bonded together.

Named by Samsung as bonding vertical NAND Flash or BV NAND, the technology is also praised by Samsung as the “dream NAND for AI,” stating that it will boost bit density per unit area by 1.6 times, according to the Korea Economic Daily.

This method is expected to support “ultra-high” NAND stacks by offering substantial storage capacity and efficient heat dissipation, which is ideal for SSDs used in AI data centers.

Roadmap for 1,000-layer NAND Revealed

Samsung is indeed ambitious as it also reveals the long-term roadmap for NANDs with more layers. According to the Korea Economic Daily, it plans to advance its stacking technology with the launch of V11 NAND in 2027, featuring a 50% increase in data input and output speed. Moreover, executives cited by the report state that the memory giant also aims to develop NAND with over 1,000 layers by 2030.

According to TrendForce’s latest research, in the second quarter of 2024, Samsung maintained its global leadership in the NAND Flash market with a 36.9% market share, up 0.2% from the previous quarter. SK Group followed with a 22.1% share, down 0.1%. Other key players include Kioxia (13.8%), Micron (11.8%), and Western Digital (10.5%).

Read more

• [News] SK hynix Reportedly Develops NAND over 400 Layers, Eyeing Mass Production Ready by 2025
• [News] Outpacing Samsung or the End of Race? Kioxia Aims 1000-layer NAND by 2027

(Photo credit: Samsung)

Kioxia is set to introduce its progress on DRAM storage-class memory (SCM) and 3D-NAND technologies at the IEEE International Electron Devices Meeting (IEDM) 2024 conference in San Francisco in December, featuring its Oxide-Semiconductor Channel Transistor DRAM (OCTRAM) technology jointly developed with Taiwan memory chipmaker Nanya Technology, as well as MRAM-based storage-class memory jointly developed with SK hynix, according to a report from Block and Files.

Kioxia will reportedly present a new type of DRAM with oxide semiconductors that reduce power consumption, MRAM suitable for larger capacities for SCM applications, and a new 3D NAND structure with superior bit density and performance.

According to the report, Kioxia has developed the DRAM with oxide semiconductors with Nanya Technology. This Oxide-Semiconductor Channel Transistor DRAM (OCTRAM) features a gate-all-round InGaZnO (Indium Gallium Zinc Oxide) vertical transistor with the oxide that can reduce current leakage to an “extremely low” level. According to Kioxia’s press release, the technology has the potential to reduce power consumption across various applications, such as AI, post-5G communication systems, and IoT devices.

The MRAM-based storage-class memory is developed with SK hynix. According to Kioxia’s press release, the companies have achieved cell read/write operation at the smallest-ever scale of cell half-pitch of 20.5 nanometers for MRAM. The press release pointed out that memory reliability tends to degrade as cells are miniaturized. The companies develop a new read/write method that can reduce the unwanted capacitance that occurs in the readout circuits.  According to Kioxia’s press release, this technology has practical applications for AI and big data processing.

Last, Kioxia developed a new 3D NAND structure, aiming to enhance reliability and prevent the performance degradation of NAND-type cell. In conventional structures, degradation of performance typically occurs when the number of stacked layers increases. Compared to the conventional structure that stacks NAND-type cells vertically, the new structure arranges NAND-type cells horizontally. The press release indicated that this new structure makes it possible to develop 3D flash memory with high bit density and reliability at low cost.

(Photo credit: Kioxia)

SK hynix Inc announced today that it recorded 17.5731 trillion won in revenues, 7.03 trillion won in operating profit (with an operating margin of 40%), and 5.7534 trillion won in net profit (with a net margin of 33%) in the third quarter this year.

According to the third-quarter financial report released today by SK hynix, the company posted record-breaking figures, including revenues of 17.5731 trillion won, an operating profit of 7.03 trillion won (with an operating margin of 40%), and a net profit of 5.7534 trillion won (with a net margin of 33%) for the third quarter of this year.

SK hynix’s financial report shows that quarterly revenues hit an all-time high, exceeding the previous record of 16.4233 trillion won in the second quarter of this year by over 1 trillion won. Both operating profit and net profit also surpassed the records set during the semiconductor boom in the third quarter of 2018, which were 6.4724 trillion won and 4.6922 trillion won, respectively.

SK hynix emphasized that the demand for AI memory continued to be strong centered on data center customers, and the company marked its highest revenue since its foundation by expanding sales of premium products such as HBM and eSSD. In particular, HBM sales showed excellent growth, up more than 70% from the previous quarter and more than 330% from the same period last year.

As sales increased mainly on highly profitable premium products, the average selling price (ASP) of both DRAM and NAND rose in the mid 10% range compared to the previous quarter, which made the company mark the highest operating profit.

While the demand of memory for AI servers such as HBM and eSSD has grown noticeably this year, SK hynix predicts that this trend will continue next year. This is because generative AI is developing into a multi-modal1 form and global big tech companies continue to invest to develop artificial general intelligence (AGI).

SK hynix also forecasts that the PC and mobile product markets, which had been slow to recover demand compared to memory for AI servers, will be on a steady growth path as well next year as AI memories optimized for each device are released.

As a result, the company will continue to focus on profitability by increasing sales centered on high value-added products based on its world-leading technology in AI memory.

In the DRAM area, SK hynix is continuing the rapid transition from existing HBM3 to 8-layer HBM3E products. The company also plans to start supplying 12-layer HBM3E products, which were mass-produced last month, in the fourth quarter as scheduled. This makes HBM sales, which accounted for 30% of total DRAM revenues in the third quarter, expected to reach 40% in the fourth quarter.

For NAND, the company plans to expand sales of high-capacity eSSD, which is rapidly increasing market demand, while focusing on investment efficiency and production optimization.

“SK hynix has solidified its position as the world’s No.1 AI memory company by achieving the highest business performance ever in the third quarter of this year.” said Kim Woohyun, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) at SK hynix. “We will continue to maximize profitability while securing stable revenues by taking flexible product and supply strategies in line with market demand.”

(Photo credit: SK hynix)