SK hynix is accelerating mass production of 10-nanometer-class fifth-generation (1b) DRAM to be mounted on sixth-generation high-bandwidth memory (HBM4). With quality testing of HBM4 with Nvidia entering the final stage, the move is seen as a swift response to supply HBM4 volumes for Nvidia's latest artificial intelligence (AI) accelerator "Vera Rubin." SK hynix plans not only to load wafers for mass production of 1b DRAM but also to expand capacity by adding to the Cheongju M15x fab (factory) and converting processes at the M16 fab.
According to the industry on the 3rd, SK hynix is said to plan to ramp up (full-scale) mass production of 1b DRAM for HBM4 as early as this month. It appears aimed not only at supplying HBM4 sample volumes requested by Nvidia but also at supplying HBM4 volumes for Vera Rubin. To supply the HBM4 volumes Nvidia demands, SK hynix is understood to be newly securing monthly capacity equivalent to 40,000 wafers at M15x by year-end and pursuing a process conversion at M16.
SK hynix appears set to tighten the reins on HBM4 mass production based on its internal assessment that it has met much of the upgraded HBM4 performance requirements requested by Nvidia. Although SK hynix announced last September that it had established the industry's first mass production system and thereby formalized HBM4 mass production, Nvidia is analyzed to have raised product performance requirements such as data transfer speed, prompting multiple design changes. Samsung Electronics said, "We have met the performance requirements without redesign from the start of development to date," but SK hynix is reported to have changed designs and thus been slower than initially expected to meet the performance requirements.
With Samsung Electronics formalizing "HBM4 mass production and supply in February," a speed race over supply is expected. Although contracts for this year's HBM4 supply volumes were completed last year, which corporations supply HBM4 first that ultimately meets the performance requirements requested by Nvidia is a factor that can gauge the technological prowess they currently possess. Samsung Electronics, compared with SK hynix, has mounted 10-nanometer-class sixth-generation (1c) DRAM, which is a generation ahead, and has asserted technological superiority by applying a 4-nanometer (nm; 1 nm is one-billionth of a meter) process to the logic die that serves as HBM4's brain ahead of SK hynix and Micron, putting SK hynix, which has held the No. 1 position, in a situation where it must prove its competitiveness.
SK hynix is seen to be pursuing a strategy of gaining an edge in business viability based on stable Production yield. While Samsung Electronics may have the upper hand in product performance by applying 1c DRAM to HBM4, SK hynix could lead in Production yield. Because HBM4 incorporates 12 advanced DRAM chips, the yield of each DRAM is crucial. If the DRAM process yield falls below 90%, the overall HBM4 yield is bound to drop sharply. This is directly linked to price competitiveness and the HBM business's revenue.
A semiconductor industry official said, "Given the launch schedule of Nvidia's next-generation AI accelerator, supply of HBM4, a core component, needs to go full scale starting in February," and added, "As Samsung Electronics is confident of shipments this month, SK hynix is also said to be planning to expand mass production volumes to meet Nvidia's requested volumes. The strategy is to dispel market concerns about performance with swift supply and prove business viability to maintain the No. 1 position in HBM."