By Heekyong Yang
SEOUL (Reuters) – SK Hynix stated on Friday it has accomplished its inner certification course of for subsequent technology high-bandwidth reminiscence 4(HBM4) chips and established a manufacturing system for patrons because it seeks to retain a lead over rivals.
In March, the South Korean chipmaker, a key provider to AI big Nvidia, stated it had shipped its HBM4 12-layer chip samples to clients, including that the corporate goals to finish preparations for mass manufacturing of 12-layer HBM4 merchandise throughout the second half of this 12 months.
HBM – a sort of dynamic random entry reminiscence or DRAM customary first produced in 2013 – entails stacking chips vertically to save lots of house and cut back energy consumption, serving to to course of the massive volumes of information generated by complicated AI functions.
Kim Sunwoo, a senior analyst at Meritz Securities, projected that SK Hynix’s HBM market share will stay within the low 60% vary in 2026, in comparison with this 12 months’s 66% market share, supported by early HBM4 provide to key clients and the ensuing first-mover benefit.
SK Hynix is presently the principle HBM provider to Nvidia, though Samsung Electronics and Micron provide it with smaller volumes.
Shares of SK Hynix closed at a report excessive, rising 7% to complete at 328,500 received ($236.71), outpacing the benchmark KOSPI’s 1.5% rise, as analysts cited the corporate’s HBM4 chip manufacturing plans. Samsung Electronics closed up 2.7%.
“Samsung Electronics has trailed within the HBM race up to now, however is aiming to slender the hole by adopting the extra superior 1c-nanometer node, in contrast with rival SK Hynix’s 1b-nanometer course of for HBM4 chips,” stated Ryu Younger-ho, a senior analyst at NH Funding & Securities.
Ryu added that Samsung’s weaker observe report in HBM makes the shift to a extra superior node an indication of a stronger push to catch up.
Samsung stated in July that it had offered samples of its HBM4 chips to clients, with a plan to produce them subsequent 12 months.
An SK Hynix govt informed Reuters in an interview final month that due to technological modifications in how SK Hynix and rivals similar to Micron and Samsung construct next-generation HBM4, their merchandise embody a customer-specific logic die, or “base die”, that helps handle the reminiscence.
Which means it’s now not potential to simply substitute a rival’s reminiscence product with a virtually equivalent chip or product.
Shares of SK Hynix up to now this 12 months are up 88.9%, outpacing the KOSPI’s 41.5% achieve, whereas Samsung Electronics shares have risen 41.7%. Micron shares buying and selling on Nasdaq have climbed 78.9% over the interval.