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The Korean giant is making every effort to secure NVIDIA’s trust with their next-gen HBM4 process, despite facing challenges from previous attempts.
**Samsung Is Prepared for a ‘Price War’ in the HBM4 Supply Chain**
For those who are unaware, Samsung has been trying to enter NVIDIA’s supply chain for several quarters. This move is crucial because Team Green (NVIDIA) is currently the largest consumer of High Bandwidth Memory (HBM), driven by the demand for their AI chips. According to a report in The Bell, Samsung is ready to engage in a ‘price war’ with SK hynix and Micron. The firm plans to offer competitive HBM4 pricing to NVIDIA, which could give it leverage and eventually secure its place in the supply chain.
Samsung is reportedly increasing production capacities and has also employed advanced equipment like ASML’s High-NA EUV to ensure an unmatched end product. More importantly, Samsung aims to price its HBM4 supply competitively so that competitors like SK hynix and Micron cannot match it. The firm is willing to sacrifice profit margins to ensure inclusion in NVIDIA’s list of partners.
The reason for Samsung’s advantage with HBM4 lies in its independent logic and semiconductor production lines. This allows the company to provide NVIDIA with capacity unmatched by any other firm. Given that SK hynix is rumored to be offering a ‘premium’ price for its HBM4 process, up to 30%-40% higher than HBM3E, Samsung is taking significant risks by offering lower pricing and higher production capacity.
Samsung’s Chairman Jay Y. Lee recently met with NVIDIA’s CEO Jensen Huang during his visit to the US. Reports suggest that Team Green is keen on collaborating in HBM and other sectors. A breakthrough in the Samsung-NVIDIA fiasco through HBM4 might be possible, but it remains uncertain for now.