SK Hynix, Confident in HBM: "Conquering AI Memory Market with No.1 DNA"

World's First HBM3E Developed... "One Team Culture, Company's Strength"

SK Hynix has expressed confidence that it can dominate the AI (Artificial Intelligence) HBM (High Bandwidth Memory) semiconductor market.

On the 19th, SK Hynix posted an interview with the HBM3E development team on its newsroom. HBM3E is the 5th generation HBM product, which SK Hynix developed first in the world last month. Its capacity, data processing speed, and heat dissipation performance have all improved compared to the previous HBM3 product.

The capacity increased by 1.4 times compared to HBM3. The capacity is expected to increase further when 12-layer stacking products are released in the future. This is because even with the current 8-layer stacking, it has secured a capacity equivalent to 12-layer stacking of HBM3. The speed is 1.3 times faster, with a maximum processing speed per pin of 9.2Gbps and a maximum of over 1.15TB (terabytes) per second. It is the first HBM product to surpass the TB barrier. It can process data equivalent to more than 230 Full HD (FHD) movies (5GB each) in just one second. Heat dissipation performance improved by 10% compared to the previous generation by strengthening heat dissipation materials and related package technologies.

Another attractive point is that HBM3E can be used directly in systems and designs for HBM3. This is because it was made exactly the same as the HBM3 package appearance and according to the JEDEC (Joint Electron Device Engineering Council) semiconductor standard specifications. Hwang Hyun, D-RAM Product Planning TL, said, "We succeeded in developing HBM3E, which is improved in speed, capacity, and heat control according to customer demand, for the first time in the world," adding, "Thanks to actively reflecting customer feedback, the market response is also very positive."

The key developers of SK Hynix's 5th generation HBM (High Bandwidth Memory) semiconductor 'HBM3E'.
From the left: Jaeseung Lee, HBM Design TL; Yangsuk Hong, HBM PE TL; Hyun Hwang, DRAM Product Planning TL; Kyungmoo Ha, HBM PKG Product TL; Onjeon Park, DRAM Development TL.
[Photo by SK Hynix]

The development team expressed confidence in dominating the AI memory market with SK Hynix's 'No.1 DNA.' They emphasized the significance of developing HBM3E just three months after developing the 12-layer stacked HBM3 24GB package. They believe they have steadily solidified their technological leadership by playing the 'first mover' role from the initial development of HBM to HBM3E.

The next challenge is how stably HBM3E can be mass-produced. In terms of performance, they must continue to introduce high-quality products with speeds even higher than 'terabytes per second' to win customer 'love calls.' Lee Jae-seung, HBM Design TL, said, "Sometimes the perspective that SK Hynix is obviously No.1 in HBM can be a burden, but ultimately, we have confidence that we will succeed."

Hong Yang-sook, HBM PE TL, said, "Since there are many challenges in developing leading products, the members inevitably become close-knit," adding, "'One team' culture is the driving force that can firmly maintain the company's HBM technological leadership."