A man walks past the Samsung logo displayed on the glass door of the Seocho Building in Seoul on April 7, 2023.
Jung Yeon-je | AFP | Getty Images
Samsung Electronics’ latest high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chip has not yet been approved NVIDIA Three people familiar with the matter said that testing of the company’s artificial intelligence processor is ongoing due to heat and power consumption issues.
The issues affect Samsung’s HBM3 chips, the fourth-generation HBM standard currently most commonly used for artificial intelligence graphics processing units (GPUs), as well as the fifth-generation HBM3E chips that the Korean tech giant and its rivals are bringing to market. This year, they said.
The reason why Samsung failed Nvidia’s test was reported for the first time.
Samsung said in a statement to Reuters that HBM is a customized memory product that requires “an optimization process based on customer needs,” adding that the company is optimizing its products through close collaboration with customers. It declined to comment on specific customers.
Nvidia declined to comment.
HBM is a dynamic random access memory, or DRAM, standard first introduced in 2013 in which dies are stacked vertically to save space and reduce power consumption, helping to process the large amounts of data generated by complex artificial intelligence applications. As the demand for sophisticated GPUs surges in the generative AI boom, so does the need for HBM.
Nvidia occupies about 80% of the global GPU market for AI applications, and keeping Nvidia satisfied is seen as key to the HBM manufacturer’s future growth – both in terms of reputation and profit momentum.
Samsung has been working to pass Nvidia’s testing of HBM3 and HBM3E since last year, three sources said. The results of recent failed tests of Samsung’s 8- and 12-layer HBM3E wafers were announced in April, according to two people familiar with the matter.
It’s unclear whether the issues can be easily resolved, but three sources said the failure to meet Nvidia’s demands has fueled industry and investor concerns that Samsung could fall further behind rivals SK Hynix and Micron Technology In HBM.
Samsung officials briefed two of the sources, who requested anonymity because the information is confidential.
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Compared with Samsung, domestic rival SK Hynix is Nvidia’s main supplier of HBM chips and has been supplying HBM3 since June 2022. Sources said the shipments were Nvidia’s.
Micron, the only major manufacturer of HBM, has also said it will provide HBM3E to Nvidia.
Analysts said Samsung this week changed the head of its semiconductor unit, a move that appeared to highlight concerns about its lagging position in HBM, saying a new top figure was needed to deal with the “crisis” affecting the industry.
Research director Jeff Kim said the market has high expectations that Samsung, the world’s largest memory chip maker, can quickly pass Nvidia’s test, but it is natural that professional products like HBM will take some time to meet customers’ performance evaluations. of.
Although Samsung is not yet an HBM3 supplier to Nvidia, it does supply to the following customers: Advanced Micro Devices AMD (AMD) plans to begin mass production of HBM3E chips in the second quarter. Samsung said in a statement to Reuters that its product plans are on track.
Analysts also said that SK Hynix, which developed the first HBM chip in 2013, has spent far more time and resources on HBM research and development in the past decade than Samsung, occupying a technological advantage.
Samsung said in a statement that it developed the first commercial HBM solution for high-performance computing in 2015 and has continued to invest in HBM since then.
Sources also said that GPU makers such as Nvidia and AMD are eager for Samsung to perfect its HBM chips so that they have more supplier choices and weaken SK Hynix’s pricing power.
At the Nvidia AI conference in March, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang signed a placard at Samsung’s booth that read “Jensen approves” Samsung’s 12-layer HBM3E, underscoring the company’s commitment to Samsung supplying these Enthusiasm for the prospect of wafers.
Research firm Trendforce said that HBM3E chips are likely to become the mainstream HBM product on the market this year, with shipments concentrated in the second half of 2024.
In addition, SK Hynix estimates that the overall demand for HBM memory chips may grow at an annual rate of 82% by 2027.
Analysts said Samsung’s relatively weak position in HBM has attracted investors’ attention. Its shares are flat so far this year, while SK Hynix’s shares are up 41% and Micron’s shares are up 48%.
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