Samsung to use SK Hynix-backed chip making tech amid AI competition

The world's leading memory chipmaker, Samsung, aims to produce high-end chips for artificial intelligence using chip making technology supported by rival SK Hynix, as per sources.

The increasing need for generative AI has led to a boom in the market for high bandwidth memory (HBM) devices. On the other hand, Samsung has been conspicuously absent from any agreements with Nvidia, the leader in AI chips, to supply the newest HBM chips, in contrast to its peers, SK Hynix and Micron Technology.

Analysts and industry observers believe that one of the reasons Samsung has lagged is that it continues to use non-conductive film (NCF) chip technology, which has some production issues. In response, Hynix moved to the mass reflow molded underfill (MR-MUF) method, which circumvents NCF's drawbacks.

Three people with direct knowledge of the situation, however, stated that Samsung has recently placed purchase orders for chipmaking machinery meant to handle the MUF technique.

As per one of the sources, Samsung needed to increase its HBM production yields. The adoption of the MUF technique is somewhat of a "swallow your pride" move for Samsung, as it ultimately adopted the same technique that SK Hynix had originally used.

Samsung announced that the NCF technology it uses in its new HBM3E chips is the "optimal solution" for HBM products. Samsung responded to inquiries from reporters regarding the article by stating that their HBM3E product business was operating according to schedule.