Baek Byung-yeul is a journalist at The Korea Times focused on cultural content, including films and cultural events in South Korea. You can contact him at baekby@koreatimes.co.kr to share your insights.
Samsung set to complete stability of 'HBM-PIM' chips
Samsung Electronics' HBM-PIM chips / Courtesy of Samsung Electronics
By Baek Byung-yeul
By Baek Byung-yeul
Samsung Electronics is further deepening its technology moat in the semiconductor sector as the Korean tech giant is set to complete test verification of next-generation memory chips that feature artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
The world's largest memory chipmaker has developed high bandwidth memory (HBM) integrated with AI processing power, called HBM-PIM, for the first time in the industry.
The new processing-in-memory (PIM) architecture brings powerful AI processing capabilities inside high-performance memory. The new product enables existing computing system to process data much faster while data doesn't need to be moved to a main CPU for processing, the company said.
Samsung said its HBM-PIM chips are not replacements for processing chips such as a central processing unit (CPU) or graphics processing unit (GPU) as the new product is designed to facilitate speedy AI data processing.
“Our groundbreaking HBM-PIM is the industry's first programmable PIM solution tailored for diverse AI-driven workloads such as HPC, training and inference. We plan to build upon this breakthrough by further collaborating with AI solution providers for even more advanced PIM-powered applications,” said Park Kwang-il, senior vice president of memory product planning at Samsung.
The company said its HBM-PIM is now being tested and the test is expected to be completed within the first half of 2021.
The AI chip market is expected to show rapid growth. Global consulting firm McKinsey & Company presumed the AI chip market will grow to $65 billion in 2025, which could account for 19 percent of the entire semiconductor market.
The development of HBM-PIM memory chips is in line with Samsung Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong's vision to expand the company's presence in the post-COVID-19 era. Last July, Lee visited the chip-making unit in Onyang, South Chungcheong Province, to check the company's next-generation chip packaging technologies.
"We have to occupy the future of the post-COVID-19 era. There is no time to hesitate. We have to leap forward," the vice chairman said during his visit.
HBM-PIM chips will also apparently help Samsung solidify its leadership in the semiconductor sector at a time when industries are struggling with chip shortages.
Carmakers worldwide have been especially affected by the chip shortages, which has caused them to postpone their car production. The shortage issue has occurred as semiconductor makers have given priority to chips for IT devices and home appliances, which have been in strong demand since the COVID-19 outbreak.
Market tracker IHS Markit expected the chip shortage issue could impact the production of nearly 1 million vehicles in the first quarter.
As Samsung has temporarily shut down its chip plant in Austin, Texas, due to a power outage in the region following an unprecedented snowstorm, industry analysts forecast the ongoing chip shortage issue will continue for products such as automobiles, home appliances and smartphones throughout the first half of 2021.
Samsung said it will resume operation of its chip-making factory in Texas as soon as the electricity is back on. To minimize the impact from the shutdown, Samsung said it will dispatch over 100 engineers working at its chip plants in Korea to Austin soon.