The recent increase in mature process DRAM prices is expected to boost Samsung Electronics' DRAM business revenue, offsetting the sluggishness in its high bandwidth memory (HBM) business and fueling momentum for its performance in the second quarter of 2025.

AMD on June 12 officially confirmed that its next-generation AI accelerators—the Instinct MI350X and MI355X—will feature 12-high HBM3E memory supplied by Samsung and Micron. The confirmation marks a strategic win for Samsung, which has faced challenges qualifying its HBM3E for use in Nvidia's AI chips.

As data centers face increasing demands for AI training and inference workloads, high-bandwidth memory (HBM) has become a critical competitive edge for memory manufacturers. Micron announced that its 12-layer stacked 36GB HBM4 samples have been delivered to multiple major customers. Utilizing the 1β DRAM process technology, mass production is expected to begin in 2026 to support customer growth on next-generation AI platforms.

SK Hynix has unveiled a long-term roadmap for next-generation DRAM technologies, laying out a vision that aims to drive sustainable innovation over the next 30 years as the global semiconductor industry undergoes rapid transformation.

Nvidia has reportedly tapped Micron Technology as the first supplier of its next-generation small outline compression attached memory module (SOCAMM) chips, putting the US-based memory maker ahead of Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix in the race to power next-gen AI servers.

As mass production of sixth-generation HBM4 nears, South Korean chip giants Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are aggressively reconstructing their semiconductor equipment supply chains to strengthen competitiveness, reported Korean medium IT Chosun.

Chipmaker Micron Technology Inc. said it will spend about US$200 billion on US manufacturing, research and development, the latest company to pledge large-scale investments in the country since President Donald Trump won election.

SK Hynix President and CEO Kwak Noh-jung warned that growing tariff-related uncertainty could heighten market volatility in the second half of 2025. He shared these views during the company's quarterly "THE Communication Event Together" at its Icheon headquarters in South Korea, which was also streamed live to business sites across the country, according to ETNews, Hankook Daily, and Yonhap News.

Samsung Electronics has reportedly failed its third attempt at obtaining Nvidia's certification for 12-layer HBM3E chips in June 2025, according to a recent report by a Hong Kong brokerage cited by South Korea's Businesspost. The tech giant is now targeting a fourth certification attempt in September.

Taiwan-based memory module vendors Adata Technology and Team Group Inc. saw notable revenue gains in May 2025, driven by continued price increases for DRAM and NAND flash. Adata reported NT$4.169 billion (approx. US$139.3 million) in consolidated revenue—its best May performance on record and highest monthly total since April 2010. Team Group posted NT$1.202 billion (approx. US$40.2 million), marking a 6.6% month-over-month rise and its second-best May result to date.

Memory manufacturers are reducing production capacity for older processes, driving DDR4 prices to skyrocket. Although Samsung Electronics' last buy order (LBO) for DDR4 was originally scheduled to end in June 2025, with production ceasing by the end of the year, memory module makers are already struggling to secure supply.

In a sign of China's accelerating ambitions in the semiconductor race, ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT), the country's leading DRAM manufacturer, is rapidly advancing development of next-generation memory technologies. Departing from its original plan to commercialize DDR5 using a 17-nanometer process, CXMT is now opting for a more advanced 16-nanometer node. A 15-nanometer process is also under development, with mass production targeted for late 2026.

SK Hynix is approaching the final delivery deadline for its May orders of thermal compression bonding (TCB) equipment from Hanmi Semiconductor and Hanwha Semitech, as the industry focus shifts to which vendor will secure contracts for the second half of 2025.

According to a press release on June 10, Micron Technology announced it has begun shipping samples of its 36GB HBM4 with 12-high stacking to multiple customers. The new memory is built on Micron's 1-beta DRAM process and features a 2048-bit interface capable of exceeding 2.0 TB/s per stack — more than a 60% performance improvement over its predecessor.

Samsung Electronics' foundry division is targeting the artificial intelligence (AI) chip market with a new collaboration alongside Groq, aiming to bring their jointly developed chip into mass production. Groq CEO Jonathan Ross recently stated that together with Samsung Foundry, they have created a truly outstanding chip on a global scale.

Chinese memory chipmaker Yangtze Memory Technologies Co. (YMTC) has filed a federal lawsuit in Washington, DC, accusing US-based Micron Technology of launching a disinformation campaign that falsely characterizes YMTC's chips as spyware-laden and a threat to national security.

China's largest cloud and internet companies are implementing backup supply chain strategies as bilateral trade uncertainties continue. Baidu Inc., Alibaba, Tencent and Huawei have developed contingency plans with domestic memory module manufacturers, beginning gradual localization in early 2025.

European financial securities firm UBS recently released a report indicating that Samsung Electronics' anticipated 12-layer HBM3E, originally expected by June 2025, may not be ready to supply Nvidia until the fourth quarter of 2025.

The Indian government has amended Special Economic Zone (SEZ) rules to support semiconductor and electronics component manufacturing, reducing the minimum land requirement from 50 hectares to 10 hectares for SEZs dedicated to these sectors. The changes, notified on June 3, 2025, also relax conditions on encumbrance-free land, allowing mortgaged or leased land held by government agencies to be used for SEZ purposes.

Kioxia, Japan's leading NAND flash memory manufacturer, is preparing for an aggressive expansion. The company has announced a bold plan to double its memory production capacity by fiscal year 2029, with a focus on increasing output to meet growing demand from sectors like artificial intelligence.

Samsung Electronics is accelerating its development of next-generation low-power memory technology, aiming to begin production of LPDDR6 using its advanced 1c DRAM process in the second half of 2025, according to a report by South Korean media outlet Businesspost. The company reportedly plans to supply major global tech firms such as Qualcomm, a strategic move to reinforce its leadership and counter rising competition from China's ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT).

Samsung Electronics's largest labor union lost almost 7,000 members in two months following the mass resignation of its executive leadership, potentially disrupting negotiations with management as the South Korean chipmaker grapples with production challenges and intensifying competition from TSMC.

Taiwan-based NAND controller manufacturer Phison Electronics posted a May 2025 consolidated revenue of NT$5.69 billion (approx. US$175 million), down 5.2% from the previous month but up 6% year-over-year. Cumulative revenue for January through May reached NT$25.531 billion, declining 5.7% annually but marking the third-highest on record.

These are the most-read DIGITIMES Asia stories from June 2 to June 8, 2025. Top highlights include Arm's strategic rebrand and entry into proprietary chip design, Huawei's aggressive R&D-driven resurgence, and growing momentum across Asia in AI semiconductors and advanced packaging. As global tech giants recalibrate in response to shifting supply chain dynamics, export controls, and rising open-source threats, the week's top stories reflect deepening fault lines—and fresh opportunities—across the semiconductor and system architecture landscape.

South Korean semiconductor equipment manufacturers are seeing a surge in demand from Chinese memory chipmakers, according to a report from Hankyung. ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) and Yangtze Memory Technologies (YMTC) are placing urgent bulk orders - some reportedly at premiums of 1.7-2 times the original price - to secure tools essential for producing advanced LPDDR5 DRAM and high-bandwidth memory (HBM) products.