SEOUL — Samsung Electronics said Friday it has begun shipping samples of its latest high-bandwidth memory chip, the 12-layer HBM4E, marking what it called the world’s first shipment of the next-generation artificial intelligence memory product.
The shipment comes three months after Samsung became the first company to begin mass production and shipments of sixth-generation HBM4 chips in February, underscoring its push to strengthen its position in the fast-growing AI memory market.
Samsung said the HBM4E delivers industry-leading performance through optimized chip design and manufacturing processes, according to Yonhap News Agency.
The chip supports data transfer speeds of up to 16 gigabits per second per pin, more than 20% faster than the previous HBM4 lineup. It also offers bandwidth of up to 3.6 terabytes per second per stack, enabling faster processing speeds for large language models and next-generation AI systems.
“Following the successful mass production of HBM4, Samsung has completed the shipment of next-generation HBM4E samples without disruption, further solidifying its technological leadership in the market,” Hwang Sang-joon, head of memory development at Samsung Electronics, said in a statement.
Samsung said it plans to begin mass production of HBM4E in line with customer schedules following the sample shipments.
The company’s customers include major AI companies such as Advanced Micro Devices, Nvidia and Google.
South Korean stocks also traded higher Friday as investors reacted positively to reports that the United States and Iran had agreed to extend their ceasefire.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index had gained 190.76 points, or 2.33%, to 8,376.05 as of 11:20 a.m. local time.
Reports said Washington and Tehran agreed to a 60-day ceasefire extension and further talks on Iran’s nuclear program.
Wall Street was also lifted by the reports, with all three major U.S. stock indexes posting record closing highs.
In Seoul, Samsung Electronics rose 4.34%, while rival chipmaker SK hynix added 1.4%. (Source: IANS)
