dram

According to a report by the Financial Associated Press citing local media on September 29, Samsung Electronics Executive Vice President Kim Taewoo stated that HBM is expected to account for nearly 30% of the total wafer capacity of DRAM manufacturers next year, up from the current ratio of about 20%. He mentioned that HBM competes with traditional DRAM for the same batch of wafer capacity, and increasing HBM output may squeeze the supply of traditional DRAM.TrendForce previously predicted that by the end of 2027, the HBM wafer input from the three major global HBM suppliers will account for about 30% of the total DRAM wafer input, but in terms of storage capacity, it will only contribute about 13% of the total DRAM supply. Additionally, according to media reports on September 20, Samsung began mass production and shipment of HBM4 in February this year and provided 12-layer HBM4E samples to customers including NVIDIA in May; the industry expects Samsung's monthly wafer input for HBM to increase from about 180,000 wafers this year to about 250,000 wafers next year.On the same day, TrendForce stated that the demand for AI servers continues, and HBM and general DRAM will still share limited advanced process capacity. The storage supply will remain tight in 2027, and the price expectations for HBM in 2027 have been raised, with an expected year-on-year increase of 121% in the mixed average selling price. Due to limited supply and rising system costs, 8-layer HBM is expected to become a priority evaluation option for several manufacturers in 2027, with its price per Gb expected to be about 10% to 20% higher than that of 12-layer products.

According to a report by South Korea's "JoongAng Ilbo," a statement obtained from a former head of equipment investment at Changxin Memory Technologies (CXMT), who has a background at Samsung Electronics, reveals that the former CEO of CXMT, Wang Ningguo, summoned the Korean team, including the individual in question, from October to December 2016. He demanded they bring back Samsung Electronics' Process Recipe Plan (PRP) and equipment information, threatening to report them to the South Korean government if they failed to do so, and warned them to verify their connections and not to lie. The individual stated that they felt scared at the time. The report mentioned that CXMT's management referred to Samsung Electronics as "Huangshan."After working at Samsung Electronics for 28 years, the individual joined CXMT and was prosecuted for allegedly leaking and using Samsung's 1.6 trillion won investment in the world’s first 18-nanometer DRAM process without authorization. In April of this year, they were sentenced to seven years in prison in the first trial and are currently in the second trial. The PRP includes the sequence of about 600 steps in DRAM manufacturing, equipment, condition values, and the companies and models of the equipment. Park, a former process design engineer at Samsung, hand-copied the relevant content into a 12-page notebook in September 2016 and brought it out, and is currently under an Interpol Red Notice.During the court hearing, the individual stated that there was a claim made during communications with the Chinese side that investment would not be provided to CXMT if they could not produce the 18-nanometer process. They later learned that the other party had wanted the technology from the very beginning, and CXMT initially had no plans to develop it independently. The pressure mentioned occurred before a meeting to prepare for the investment application. CXMT was established in 2016 with an investment of 14.4 billion yuan from Hefei Industrial Investment, a subsidiary of the Hefei municipal government, and had not been profitable for about 10 years, achieving its first annual profit last year with a net profit of 7.1 billion yuan.

According to a report by ZDNet Korea on September 28, Samsung Electronics is accelerating the construction of the first mass production line (Ph1) at the Pyeongtaek Fifth Campus (P5) and is discussing with major equipment manufacturers to move the target for Ph1 equipment installation from the originally planned third quarter of next year to the second quarter of next year. P5 is the next-generation semiconductor production base aimed to be operational by 2028, and the construction of the Ph1 cleanroom began in the third quarter of this year.Samsung Electronics had previously advanced the completion of the P5 Ph1 cleanroom, originally scheduled for early next year, by about six months, so the equipment installation is expected around the third quarter of next year. Industry insiders say that the start time for equipment installation is planned to be moved up from July to August next year to around May to June next year; others have indicated that Samsung has even proposed to deliver equipment in the first quarter of next year for temporary storage at other locations, showing a strong willingness to invest early.Discussions on the investment for the second phase of P5 (Ph2) are also progressing. Currently, Ph1 is more likely to be built as a DRAM and HBM production line, while Ph2 is more likely to be built as an advanced NAND production line, including the tenth generation (V10). Equipment industry insiders say that formal purchase orders have not yet been placed, but Samsung has discussed building Ph2 as a NAND production line with partners, and due to the long equipment delivery cycle, they are requesting to prepare relevant components in advance. Reports indicate that large global tech companies are increasing orders for high-performance DRAM and NAND for AI infrastructure, while storage companies like Samsung have limited production capacity. Samsung stated during the second quarter earnings call in July that unmet demand this year will extend into next year, and the supply shortage next year will be more severe than this year, with shortages expected to continue until 2028.

Semiconductor analysis firm Kernel Insight: Demand for artificial intelligence drives DRAM prices to maintain historical highs, with the unit area sales value of the latest process DRAM exceeding the wafer prices of TSMC's N2 and N3. The firm estimates TSMC's 300mm N3 wafer price at $20,000 and N2 at $30,000, translating to nominal prices of approximately $0.283 per square millimeter and $0.424 per square millimeter, respectively, not accounting for edge losses, cutting losses, yield, and defects.Based on a price of $1.50 per Gb and generational bit density calculations, 1y DRAM is $0.329 per square millimeter, 1z is $0.410 per square millimeter, and 1b is $0.654 per square millimeter, more than 50% higher than N2. The 10nm process gradually shrinks in the order of 1y, 1z, 1a, and 1b. The above prices per Gb assume they are close to spot prices; DRAMeXchange data shows that on September 21, the average transaction price for 16Gb DDR5 eTT chips was $24.80, approximately $1.55 per Gb.There are differences in comparison metrics. TSMC's figures represent the wafer foundry prices paid by customers, while the DRAM figures represent the total sales potential of finished products and do not include advanced packaging costs; TSMC's actual supply prices will vary with order volumes and contracts. DRAM metrics are based on small spot prices, differing from the long-term contract prices of Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, and Micron's revenue entities. Recently, non-public fixed trading prices have strengthened; if they have not yet fully reflected in spot prices, the leading margin of wafer unit prices for memory manufacturers may be even greater.

According to a report by ZDNet Korea, Samsung Electronics is adjusting its next-generation DRAM strategy by incorporating the previously project-based B1b into its official roadmap, naming it the first DRAM D0a below 10 nanometers. Previously, D0a referred to vertical transistor DRAM, and this product is now classified separately as D0a-V. This renaming aims to accelerate the introduction of advanced packaging in general DRAM.B1b will manufacture storage cells and peripheral driver circuits on different wafers before bonding them together, using wafer-to-wafer hybrid bonding and directly connecting through copper interconnects. The currently commercialized DRAM is 1c, which is the 6th generation 10 nanometer level, with a line width of about 11 to 12 nanometers; the next generation 1d is the 7th generation 10 nanometer level, with a line width of about 10 to 11 nanometers, considered effectively the last 10 nanometer level product, with the related line width being a marketing term rather than an actual physical size. Vertical transistors can arrange transistors within the cell vertically, reducing the cell area from 6F² to 4F², but they need to address high aspect ratio etching and leakage current, making development more challenging. Wafer-to-wafer hybrid bonding has already been mass-produced in CMOS image sensors and high-stacking NAND.Samsung Electronics is evaluating the use of B1b for the 8th generation high bandwidth memory HBM5. HBM5 is expected to be mass-produced around 2029, aiming to increase operating speed by more than 50% compared to HBM4E. Industry estimates suggest that D0a DRAM based on B1b will be commercially available in about two years, with specific mass production investment schedules likely to be determined by mid-next year.

Jurrien Timmer, Global Macro Director at Fidelity Investments, stated on platform X that trading in the AI sector has been in a "dead money" state for over three months, with the token spending and GPU rental rates he tracks remaining flat or declining, while only memory (DRAM) prices continue to rise.Timmer believes that AI will change life in the long term and may unleash a productivity miracle, raising the non-inflationary speed limit of the economy to a level sufficient to sustain global debt. However, before that, the current construction is inflationary, and the returns on the trillions of dollars invested in computing power remain uncertain, with corporate equity and debt capital demand growing at a rate of $3.3 trillion.

The global memory market continues to face severe shortages, with AI and cloud applications driving demand and prices for DRAM and NAND Flash. China's two major memory manufacturers, Yangtze Memory Technologies and Changxin Memory Technologies, are set to break the current duopoly.Yangtze Memory Technologies will begin trial production of LPDDR5 DRAM by the end of 2026, while Changxin Memory Technologies aims to transition from DRAM to NAND Flash. Industry speculation suggests that the two companies may face off as early as 2028. Yangtze Memory Technologies has completed the development of 294-layer 3D NAND using Xtacking technology, and Samsung will enter into a patent licensing agreement with them in 2025, starting with the 10th generation V-NAND.Yangtze Memory Technologies' phase three plan is set to commence production by the end of 2026, with an initial capacity of approximately 25,000 wafers of DRAM, ramping up in 2027, targeting LPDDR5, and planning for subsequent expansions as well as HBM and 3D DRAM. Changxin is reported to be setting up a NAND research and production line in Beijing, with mass production expected as early as 2028 to 2029.

According to TechPowerUp, Chinese DRAM manufacturer Changxin Storage (CXMT) expects to reach a monthly production capacity of approximately 350,000 DRAM wafers by the end of 2026, while Micron estimates around 375,000 wafers during the same period. The cleanroom construction cycle for Changxin Storage is about 12 months, shorter than the industry norm of 21 to 24 months.Due to U.S. sanctions preventing access to EUV, Changxin Storage is using older DUV lithography and multi-patterning technology. The company has begun shipping 16 Gb DDR5 chips at a speed of 8000 MT/s, with a chip area of 67 mm² and a density of 0.239 Gb/mm², where the G4 unit is 20% smaller than the G3. The 24 Gb modules are being mass-produced at approximately 6000 MT/s, and LPDDR5X-10667 modules (12 Gb and 16 Gb) have also entered mass production. The Chinese government is encouraging Changxin Storage to transfer DRAM IP to domestic manufacturers such as JHICC, Swaysure, and Yangtze Memory Technologies (XMC).

The non-small number joint HotShort will hold the non-small number × GWDC 2026 Innovation Forum. The forum will take place on September 29, 2026, at AT CENTER in Seoul, South Korea, focusing on discussions around stock tokenization, Web3, and AI leadership topics.HotShort as a co-organizer will bring short drama content assets RWA, content assetization, and Web3 applications to the event. HotShort is a short drama content assetization platform in Southeast Asia, focusing on mobile short drama content, RWA expression, token issuance, and on-chain revenue sharing transactions. During the conference, HotShort project guest Answer, who is also a co-founder of HotShort, will give a speech sharing insights on short drama content RWA and on-chain revenue sharing.The GWDC Korea event will feature high-profile guests and institutions such as Sun Yuchen, Microsoft, Bithumb, and Animoca Brands. HotShort's entry into this scene will help place the narrative of short drama content RWA, content assetization, and on-chain revenue sharing into a larger Web3 discussion.

Douyin Group officially launched the "Free Short Drama" App, featuring a vast array of free short dramas, with the slogan "Free Short Dramas, Great Shows Always On." The content covers popular themes such as urban passion, sweet romance, workplace relationships, comebacks, and fantasy adventures. Previously, Douyin Group had released three short drama Apps: Hongguo Free Short Drama, Xianling Free Short Drama, and Muye Free Short Drama, not counting the comic drama App Hongguo Comic Drama, making this the fourth independent short drama App.The product offers two ways to find dramas: an immersive vertical scrolling single-column information flow (binge-watching mode) and a theater section (category filtering, drama library browsing). The playback page supports likes, favorites, full series access, and speed playback. The theater features tags for new dramas, small characters, tragic romances, modern love stories, and filters for historical background and thematic plots. It includes a built-in coin reward system, where new users can sign in and complete drama-watching tasks to earn coins that can be exchanged for cash and support withdrawals via Alipay, with no membership payment options, adopting a free plus ad incentive model.

Interface News has exclusively learned from the supply chain that Apple has accepted Samsung Electronics' quote for storage chips in the first quarter of 2027: DRAM is close to $2.0 per Gb, and NAND flash is close to $0.33 per Gb, an increase of 30%-40% compared to the quotes in the third quarter of this year.Interface News has reached out to Apple for confirmation regarding this news, but there has been no response at the time of publication.

According to the Chosun Ilbo report on September 15, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix's third-quarter operating profit consensus has been raised again within three months. Based on reports from major brokerages and overseas investment banks, Samsung Electronics' estimated operating profit for the third quarter is approximately 114 trillion won, an increase of 12.2836 trillion won (12%) from 101.9052 trillion won three months ago, and a 28% increase from 89.4 trillion won in the second quarter. SK Hynix's estimate for the third quarter is 78.8035 trillion won, a 4% increase from 75.7249 trillion won three months ago, and a 30% increase from 60.5426 trillion won in the second quarter.TrendForce expects the fixed transaction prices for general DRAM in the third quarter to rise by 13% to 18% quarter-on-quarter, while NAND flash is expected to rise by 10% to 15%. The securities industry is paying attention to Samsung Electronics' HBM4 revenue share, which expanded from 5% in the first quarter to about 35% in the second quarter, along with improvements in yield rates. SK Hynix maintains the largest market share in HBM, but improvements in Samsung's HBM4 mass production may dilute its supply premium. Citigroup Securities has lowered SK Hynix's third-quarter operating profit estimate from 76.7 trillion won to 74 trillion won due to the strengthening of the won. Micron will announce its fourth-quarter results for fiscal year 2026 (June to August) on the 30th, with revenue guidance of $49 billion to $51 billion.

HIP-3 market deployer Entropy spent 500 HYPE (approximately $38,950) to acquire the code DRAM, which is expected to launch the io:DRAM perpetual contract trading.Previously, Trade.xyz had deployed the xyz:DRAM perpetual contract trading. DRAM is the Roundhill Memory ETF (DRAM), the world's first pure memory-themed ETF.

China's largest DRAM manufacturer Changxin Storage (CXMT) has recently launched a bidding for equipment from partners for its new factory in Shanghai and is advancing capacity expansion in multiple locations. CXMT is currently mass-producing DRAM in Hefei Phase II and Beijing Phase I, with an estimated capacity of about 200,000 wafers per month, which may exceed 300,000 wafers per month by the end of the year.CXMT plans to open the new factory in Shanghai in the fourth quarter of this year, and the related equipment bidding has already started. Semiconductor equipment industry insiders say that the factory is planned to be expanded in two phases, with capacity significantly exceeding 100,000 wafers per month. Subsequently, there are plans to open a new factory in Hefei in the first half of next year and the earliest new factory in Beijing in the second half of next year, with another new factory in Hefei opening in the first half of the year after next.Equipment industry insiders say that CXMT has communicated with multiple parties regarding the timing of building factories in various locations. If all plans are realized, CXMT could add at least 70,000 to 80,000 wafers of capacity per month each year from this year until 2028, with a long-term goal of exceeding 600,000 wafers per month. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix's DRAM capacities are estimated at about 700,000 wafers and 600,000 wafers per month, respectively.

According to Nikkei Asia, Chinese chip manufacturer Changxin Storage (CXMT) has taken the lead in profit margins over global competitors, surpassing SK Hynix and Micron. The company has leveraged the tight supply of commodity-grade DRAM to gain an advantage in the second quarter.Changxin Storage's main products include DDR5 memory, which has seen price increases in recent months. Reports indicate that this situation has emerged in the storage chip industry dominated by suppliers from South Korea, the United States, and Japan.

SK Hynix stated on the 9th that the development of the next-generation memory 3D DRAM semiconductor can utilize foundry processes. The day before, at the 2026 SK Hynix Future Forum held at the Supex Center in the Icheon campus, Vice President Kim Kyung-hoon and Son Ho-young presented the main technical directions for 3D DRAM, including the use of logic foundry processes for DRAM peripheral circuits, maximizing data bus bandwidth, and ultra-short distance transmission.3D DRAM is the next-generation DRAM that vertically stacks the originally planar storage cells to improve integration. The two stated that achieving this technology requires addressing not only design and heat dissipation issues but also challenges in fine interconnections, bonding, and process integration in the packaging field. As the boundaries between front-end and back-end packaging, foundry, and memory technology converge, collaborative optimization beyond existing fields will become more important. Son Ho-young mentioned that 3D technology is changing the technological boundaries between wafer fabs and packaging, and it is necessary to establish an optimization and new collaboration system that transcends existing fields alongside innovations in advanced packaging technology.In a related presentation, Professor Shin Chang-hwan from Korea University stated that 3D DRAM is not only about the vertical stacking of chips but also a technology that breaks the boundaries between memory and logic. As device miniaturization approaches its limits and the time and power consumption associated with data movement between systems and memory increases, the shift to 3D technology is inevitable. He proposed a 3D integrated design framework that links materials, devices, packaging, and architecture through artificial intelligence. SK Hynix President Kwon Oh-joon, in his speech, remarked that the past memory market resembled a straight road where the competition was about who could run faster, but now it resembles a constantly changing curve, making it important to grasp the speed and direction of external environmental changes and adapt flexibly in addition to internal capabilities.

Changxin Technology held a performance briefing for the first half of 2026. An investor inquired about the third quarter DRAM price situation, and the company's Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Huang Danyang believes that looking ahead to the second half of 2026, the global supply shortage of DRAM products will continue.

KB Securities warned that the inventory of memory semiconductors at Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix has fallen to less than 10 days of supply, and the available supply next year will be significantly insufficient. The agency reported on Monday that investment in artificial intelligence infrastructure is expanding at an unprecedented pace, leading to a severe supply shortage in the memory chip market. A key factor is the transition to HBM4, which requires about three times the wafers of traditional DRAM, and limited wafer capacity will reduce the available capacity of traditional DRAM.KB Securities expects that next year, the demand for DRAM and NAND will exceed supply by more than 10 percentage points. Research director Kim Dong-won stated that artificial intelligence servers will consume HBM, server DDR5, and enterprise-grade solid-state drives, potentially leading to a historic shortage. Global hyperscale data center operators have raised their expectations for artificial intelligence infrastructure investment next year to $1.3 trillion, a 60% increase from the previous year. The agency anticipates that memory semiconductors will account for 57% of total investment in artificial intelligence infrastructure next year, up from 14% last year, with TrendForce estimating this ratio could reach as high as 68%. Samsung Electronics' stock price has dropped nearly 28% from its peak, while SK Hynix has fallen nearly 40%.

Changxin Technology held a performance briefing for the first half of 2026. The company's independent director Chen Wuchao stated in response to investor questions that in the first half of 2026, the global DRAM product market improved, and prices increased.Currently, the company is still in a critical investment period for capacity expansion and technological upgrades, and it needs to gradually create returns for shareholders while ensuring necessary capital expenditures. As profitability continues to strengthen, the company will legally and in accordance with regulations timely initiate the verification of the dividend plan.