Synopsys, Inc. today announced the industry's first complete HBM3 IP solution, including controller, PHY, and verification IP for 2.5D multi-die package systems. HBM3 technology helps designers meet essential high-bandwidth and low-power memory requirements for system-on-chip (SoC) designs targeting high-performance computing, AI and graphics applications. Synopsys' DesignWare HBM3 Controller and PHY IP, built on silicon-proven HBM2E IP, leverage Synopsys' interposer expertise to provide a low-risk solution that enables high memory bandwidth at up to 921 GB/s.

The Synopsys verification solution, including Verification IP with built-in coverage and verification plans, off-the-shelf HBM3 memory models for ZeBu emulation, and HAPS prototyping system, accelerates verification from HBM3 IP to SoCs. To accelerate development of HBM3 system designs, Synopsys' 3DIC Compiler multi-die design platform provides a fully integrated architectural exploration, implementation and system-level analysis solution.

Micron Technology, today announced availability of the Micron 7400 SSD with NVMe, delivering industry-leading form factor flexibility, PCIe Gen4 performance, and leading-edge security to meet the storage needs of demanding data center workloads. With this portfolio, Micron is providing the broadest selection of mainstream data center SSDs available. Featuring seven form factors, the Micron 7400 SSD enables the transition to next-generation server architectures. Data centers continue to evolve thanks to the rapid growth of data and proliferation of applications that demand high performance. The need to process, analyze and secure data that provides valuable insights is fueling the modernization of the data center, requiring new levels of storage innovation.

If you're looking at getting your hands on some DDR5 memory for your new Alder Lake build once it launches, a leak of validated RAM has popped up on Twitter, that should give you an idea of what to expect. The list is only a couple of weeks old and it's not what we'd call a long list, as it only covers five companies, out of which three are actual DRAM manufacturers and one is a subsidiary of one of those companies, there are no real surprises here.

All the DDR5 modules tested are rated at 4800 MHz and are either 8, 16 or 32 GB in size, with all modules using 16 Gbit chips. All modules were tested with timings of 40-39-39 at 1.1 V. Kingston is the only outlier here, since they're not a DRAM manufacturer, unlike SK hynix, Samsung and Micron/Crucial. Intel is listing all the modules as non ECC, which should put an end to the claims of all DDR5 being ECC memory.

Micron Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq: MU) today announced results for its fourth quarter and full year of fiscal 2021, which ended Sept. 2, 2021. "Micron's outstanding fourth quarter execution capped a year of several key milestones," said Micron Technology President and CEO Sanjay Mehrotra. "In fiscal 2021, we established DRAM and NAND technology leadership, drove record revenues across multiple markets, and initiated a quarterly dividend. The demand outlook for 2022 is strong, and Micron is delivering innovative solutions to our customers, fueling our long-term growth."

Investments in capital expenditures, net were $2.01 billion for the fourth quarter of 2021 and $9.72 billion for the full year of 2021, which resulted in adjusted free cash flows of $1.88 billion for the fourth quarter of 2021 and $2.75 billion for the full year of 2021. Micron repurchased approximately 13.9 million shares of its common stock for $1.05 billion during the fourth quarter of 2021 and 15.6 million shares of its common stock for $1.20 billion during the full year of 2021 and ended the year with cash, marketable investments, and restricted cash of $10.46 billion, for a net cash position of $3.69 billion.

Following the peak period of production in 3Q21, the supply of DRAM will likely begin to outpace demand in 4Q21, according to TrendForce's latest investigations (the surplus of DRAM supply is henceforth referred to as "sufficiency ratio", expressed as a percentage). In addition, while DRAM suppliers are generally carrying a healthy level of inventory, most of their clients in the end-product markets are carrying a higher level of DRAM inventory than what is considered healthy, meaning these clients will be less willing to procure additional DRAM going forward. TrendForce therefore forecasts a downward trajectory for DRAM ASP in 4Q21. More specifically, DRAM products that are currently in oversupply may experience price drops of more than 5% QoQ, and the overall DRAM ASP will likely decline by about 3-8% QoQ in 4Q21.

Although WFH and distance learning applications previously generated high demand for notebook computers, increasingly widespread vaccinations in Europe and North America have now weakened this demand, particularly for Chromebooks. As a result, global production of notebooks is expected to decline in 4Q21, in turn propelling the sufficiency ratio of PC DRAM to 1.38%, which indicates that PC DRAM will no longer be in short supply in 4Q21. However, PC DRAM accounts for a relatively low share of DRAM manufacturers' DRAM supply bits, since these suppliers have allocated more production capacities to server DRAM, which is in relatively high demand. Hence, there will unlikely be a severe surplus of PC DRAM in 4Q21. It should also be pointed out that, on average, the current spot prices of PC DRAM modules are far lower than their contract prices for 3Q21. TrendForce therefore expects an imminent 5-10% QoQ decline in PC DRAM contract prices for 4Q21, with potential for declines that are even greater than 10% for certain transactions, as PC OEMs anticipate further price drops in PC DRAM prices in the future.

Lexar unveiled out the Professional NM800, a premium follow-up to its NM620 performance-segment SSD from Spring. The NM800 takes advantage of PCI-Express Gen 4 and NVMe 1.4 protocol, and comes in capacities of 512 GB and 1 TB. The 512 GB variant offers sequential transfer rates of up to 7000 MB/s reads with up to 3000 MB/s writes, and random-access throughput of 200k/500k (read/write) IOPS. The 1 TB variant, on the other hand, does up to 7400 MB/s sequential reads, up to 5800 MB/s sequential writes, and 400k/750k IOPS. The company didn't put out which combination of controller and NAND flash it is using, but we suspect that the drive is based on the Innogrit IG5236 "Rainer" controller, and Micron 3D TLC NAND flash. Endurance of the drives is rated at 250 TBW for the 512 GB variant, and 500 TBW for the 1 TB variant. The 512 GB variant is expected to be priced at 99€, and the 1 TB variant at 179€.

NAND Flash suppliers' Clients in the data center segment were gradually stepping up enterprise SSD procurement after finishing inventory adjustments, according to TrendForce's latest investigations. Moreover, the adoption rate of 4/8 TB products in the enterprise SSD market increased substantially on account of the releases and adoption of the new server processor platforms from Intel and AMD. Although the recent wave of COVID-19 outbreaks that struck Southeast Asia weakened smartphone sales in 2Q21, the quarterly total NAND Flash bit shipments rose by nearly 9% QoQ, as PC OEMs still had plenty of component orders in 2Q21 due to the fairly robust notebook demand during the period. On the other hand, the shortage of controller ICs became more severe during the period, and the winter storm that battered Texas this February affected the operation of Samsung's foundry fab Line S2 in Austin. As demand for NAND Flash products rose, the overall ASP also rose by nearly 7% QoQ, and the quarterly total NAND Flash revenue rose by 10.8% QoQ to US$16.4 billion in 2Q21.

After DRAM prices made a rebound into an upward trajectory in 1Q21, buyers expanded their DRAM procurement activities in 2Q21 as they anticipated a further price hike and insufficient supply going forward, according to TrendForce's latest investigations. Not only was demand robust from clients in the notebook segment, which benefitted from ongoing WFH and distance learning applications, but CSPs also sought to gradually replenish their DRAM inventories. Furthermore, demand for products that are relatively niche, including graphics DRAM and consumer DRAM, remained strong. Hence, DRAM suppliers experienced better-than-expected QoQ increases in their DRAM shipment for 2Q21. At the same time, DRAM quotes grew by a greater magnitude compared to the first quarter as well. With both shipment and quotes undergoing growths in tandem, DRAM suppliers registered remarkable growths in their revenues in 2Q21. Total DRAM revenue for 2Q21 reached US$24.1 billion, a 26% QoQ increase.

PC enthusiast memory and storage brand Neo Forza, detailed its plans to roll out DDR5 memory for desktop PCs. It also sheds light on some of the possible combinations of memory speed and density under development. Q4 2021 is when the company's first DDR5 memory modules will debut. These will be basic, bare-PCB modules with specs and speeds closest to JEDEC's. The company will start out with DDR5-4800 MHz modules, with densities of 8 GB, 16 GB, and 32 GB. The starting CAS latency on these things appears to be 40T. From what we gather, 16 GB will be the new single-rank standard memory size, 8 GB single-rank will be a low-cost option; while 32 GB could be commonly dual-rank, rarely single-. These modules will likely be co-branded with authorized DRAM IC providers.

Vanilla DDR5-4800 modules are only the beginning. Neo Forza plans to develop gaming-grade memory modules, complete with chunky heatspreaders, RGB LED illumination, and more importantly, higher clock speeds. The company expects that as DDR5 matures as a standard, speeds of DDR5-6400, DDR5-7200, and DDR5-8600, will become common for the enthusiast segment. The higher frequency modules will likely be 16 GB single-rank. As densities ramp up, 64 GB dual-rank modules will be possible, and Neo Forza expects to ship 128 GB (2x 64 GB) dual-channel kits, or scale out to 4-channel thru 8-channel HEDT platforms.

The ramp-up of the Intel Ice Lake and AMD Milan processors is expected to not only propel growths in server shipment for two consecutive quarters from 2Q21 to 3Q21, but also drive up the share of high-density products in North American hyperscalers' enterprise SSD purchases, according to TrendForce's latest investigations. In China, procurement activities by domestic hyperscalers Alibaba and ByteDance are expected to increase on a quarterly basis as well. With the labor force gradually returning to physical offices, enterprises are now placing an increasing number of IT equipment orders, including servers, compared to 1H21. Hence, global enterprise SSD procurement capacity is expected to increase by 7% QoQ in 3Q21. Ongoing shortages in foundry capacities, however, have led to the supply of SSD components lagging behind demand. At the same time, enterprise SSD suppliers are aggressively raising the share of large-density products in their offerings in an attempt to optimize their product lines' profitability. Taking account of these factors, TrendForce expects contract prices of enterprise SSDs to undergo a staggering 15% QoQ increase for 3Q21.

Micron Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq: MU) today announced results for its third quarter of fiscal 2021, which ended June 3, 2021. "Micron set multiple market and product revenue records in our third quarter and achieved the largest sequential earnings improvement in our history," said Micron Technology President and CEO Sanjay Mehrotra. "Our industry-leading 1α DRAM and 176-layer NAND now represent a meaningful portion of our production, and Micron is in the best position ever to capitalize on the long-term demand trends across the data center, intelligent edge and user devices."

Micron Technology, Inc. announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its Lehi, Utah, fab to Texas Instruments. The economic value for Micron from the sale is $1.5 billion, comprised of $900 million in cash from TI from the sales transaction, and approximately $600 million in value from select tools and other assets. Micron has sold some of these assets and will retain the remainder to redeploy to its other manufacturing sites or sell to other buyers.

Micron's Lehi, Utah, facility has been home to a highly skilled team with expertise in all aspects of advanced semiconductor manufacturing. TI will offer all Lehi site team members the opportunity to become employees upon the closing of the sale and intends to deploy its own technologies at the site. The sale is anticipated to close later this calendar year.

"Micron's Lehi, Utah, facility has a strong history of technology innovation and leading-edge semiconductor manufacturing," said Micron President and CEO, Sanjay Mehrotra. "We are pleased to have reached an agreement with Texas Instruments as it is an industry leader and truly values the talented Lehi team and the capabilities this site offers to deploy its technology effectively. We are greatly appreciative of the contributions that the Lehi team has made to Micron, as well as the collaboration and engagement Micron has had with the local community."

NVIDIA today announced it is turbocharging the NVIDIA HGX AI supercomputing platform with new technologies that fuse AI with high performance computing, making supercomputing more useful to a growing number of industries.

To accelerate the new era of industrial AI and HPC, NVIDIA has added three key technologies to its HGX platform: the NVIDIA A100 80 GB PCIe GPU, NVIDIA NDR 400G InfiniBand networking, and NVIDIA Magnum IO GPUDirect Storage software. Together, they provide the extreme performance to enable industrial HPC innovation.

Micron, the US-based manufacturer of various kinds of memory technologies, has today announced some quite interesting products at its Computex 2021 keynote. For starters, the company has announced a new portfolio of products based on 176-layer NAND. There are currently two products listed that use this new technology and those are the Micron 3400 and 2450 M.2 NVMe SSDs. Based on the PCIe 4.0 interface, the 2450 SSD lineup is designed as a value-oriented solution that comes in M.2-2280, M.2-2242, and M.2-2230 sizes. It ranges from 256 GB to 1 TB in capacities, which are supposed to be priced as a value purchase.

In a contrast, the 3400 SSD is M.2-2280 design, meant for only the highest performance. The sequential read speeds go up to 6600 MB/s, while the sequential writes go up to 5000 MB/s (in the case of the 2 TB model). Capacities range from 512 GB to 2 TB and only the 1 TB and 2 TB variants have the 5000 MB/s write speeds, while the 512 GB version is capped at 3600 MB/s speed. Both SSD models are featuring a heat spreader on top of NAND chips and spot an in-house and Micron-developed NVMe 1.4 SSD controller. However, Micron does note that the company is free to use any 3rd party SSD controller as we are deep in component shortages with high demand for SSDs. You can get an in-depth look at the 2450 and 3400 M.2 SSDs from Micron's website.

Total NAND Flash revenue for 1Q21 increased by 5.1% QoQ to US$14.82 billion, according to TrendForce's latest investigations. In particular, bit shipments rose by 11% QoQ, while the overall ASP dropped by 5% QoQ; hence, bit shipment growth offset the decline in the overall ASP. Although NAND Flash demand from notebook computer and smartphone manufacturers remained high, clients from the data center segment exhibited relatively weak demand, since this segment had yet to leave the state of NAND Flash oversupply. Contract prices for this quarter therefore still mostly showed a considerable QoQ drop. On the other hand, OEMs/ODMs of end products began to increase procurement of NAND Flash products from the second half of January onward because they noticed that the shortage of NAND Flash controller ICs was affecting the production of medium- and low-density storage products. Besides avoiding a possible supply crunch in the future, OEMs/ODMs were placing additional orders because they were preparing for a push to expand market share. On account of these developments, the overall NAND Flash demand surpassed expectations in 1Q21.

Micron Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq: MU), today announced the successful closing of nearly $3.7 billion inaugural sustainability-linked credit facilities. The facilities, which create additional long-term value for Micron's stakeholders, reinforce the company's commitment to sustainability and 2030 environmental goals.

These facilities comprise a five-year $2.5 billion sustainability-linked revolving credit facility, which matures in May 2026, and a nearly $1.2 billion sustainability-linked term loan A, which matures in October 2024. The credit facility agreements refinance Micron's existing revolving credit and term loan A facilities with no impact to cash or debt balances while reducing future interest expense. Both the revolving credit facility and term loan A feature pricing adjustment mechanisms linking Micron's financial pricing to meeting the environmental targets the company has set for greenhouse gas (GHG) emission intensity, waste diversion from landfills and Responsible Business Alliance (RBA) score metrics. Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank (CIB) served as the sole sustainability structuring agent on both credit facilities.

This transaction reflects Micron's leadership in sustainable financing and positions the company as a top-five corporate sustainability-linked credit facility issuer in the U.S. while reaffirming Crédit Agricole CIB's role as a strategic investment bank and partner to global companies for sustainability.

As one of the most important tech summits globally, COMPUTEX Forum and its discussion topics have always garnered great attention. To facilitate the discussion on future technology trends, the COMPUTEX Forum on June 2 and 3 will evolve around the theme of "The New Era of Intelligence." TAITRA announced the lineup of speakers to discuss key applications of 5G, AI, IoT, and electric vehicles, deep diving into business strategies in the post-pandemic era.

In the morning of Wednesday, June 2, COMPUTEX Forum will address the topic of "AIoT Evolution." Leading semiconductor giants such as Intel, Micron, NVIDIA and Supermicro, will explore how they accelerate business opportunities in the 5G era. In the afternoon, NXP Semiconductors will kick off the "AI Empowerment" session by sharing its vision and lead the Secure Edge and AI Empowerment discussions in fields. As AI rises in various applications, Arm, Delta Electronics, Micron and Check Point Software will elaborate their latest solution in different scopes.

Netac, a Chinese company based in Shenzen claiming to be the inventor of USB flash drive, has reportedly started the research and development process of DDR5 memory modules that will outperform everything on the market. Netac is rumored to have started the development of DDR5 memory that will have a frequency of over 10,000 MHz. While the JEDEC specification notes that the DDR5 frequency range is between 4800-8400 MHz, manufacturers are always welcome to go over the official specifications. Being that Netac is a relatively new player in the PC memory space, we are wondering how the company plans to execute its plans.

A 10 GHz DDR5 memory would require a very high voltage to run, meaning high heat output. We know that DDR5 chips can run at 2.6 V, according to T-FORCE, who tested such a configuration earlier. The next potential problem would be a platform that could handle 10 GHz DDR5 memory, however, by the time we get this memory in our hands, platforms will mature enough to handle high-speed RAM. The first batch of new DDR5 memory that was sent to Netac was Micron's Z9ZSB modules, which are 2Gx8, CL40 memory modules. They are manufactured in the 1znm memory manufacturing node Micron uses. It is left to be seen what we end up with and if Netac delivers on its promise.

GALAX on Facebook announced that it is developing its next generation of DDR5 memory modules targeted at overclockers. The modules are possibly made under the HOF (Hall of Fame) brand, as the announcement comes from the company's OC Lab handle that markets its HOF series products. The announcement also comes with pictures of trays of DDR5 DRAM chips made by Micron Technology. With major DIY gaming/overclocking memory brands announcing development of DDR5 memory products, one wonders where the platforms for these memory modules are. It's rumored that Intel's upcoming 12th Gen Core "Alder Lake-S" processor in the LGA1700 package could feature a DDR5 memory interface. AMD's first client-desktop platform with DDR5 would see the transition to the new AM5 socket.

Micron Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq: MU) today announced results for its second quarter of fiscal 2021, which ended March 4, 2021. "Micron's strong fiscal second quarter performance reflects rapidly improving market conditions and continued solid execution," said Micron Technology President and CEO Sanjay Mehrotra. "Our technology leadership in both DRAM and NAND places Micron in an excellent position to capitalize on the secular demand driven by AI and 5G, and to deliver new levels of user experience and innovation across the data center and intelligent edge."

We have seen a number of announcements from key industry players about the introduction of DDR5 memory but today's news from Chinese company Jiahe Jinwei marks the beginning of DDR5 mass production. The company announced that DDR5 RAM from Micron had arrived at its facilities and that memory module production could begin. Jiahe Jinwei is the fourth largest memory manufacturer in China and owns memory brands such as Guangwei and Asgard which have recently announced DDR5 modules with capacities of up to 128 GB and speeds reaching 4,800 MHz. Intel is expected to launch their 12th Generation Alder Lake processors later this year with DDR5 support while AMD will introduce support with Zen 4 processors on a new AM5 socket.

Micron and Intel started development on 3D XPoint memory technology back in 2012 and by 2015 Intel had announced their Optane branded lineup of storage products featuring the new memory. Micron estimated that the chips would be sold for half the price of DRAM but five times the cost of flash memory and started limited manufacturing at a jointly owned factory in Lehi, Utah. The new technology was proposed as the future of memory but with Intel being the only major manufacturer of products that dream has not been realized. While the Intel Optane lineup of products has been generally well-received the high-cost and limited use cases have limited its adoption.

Micron has been dissolving its partnership with Intel over the years with their joint 3D XPoint development program ending in 2019 and Micron exercising their right to acquire Intel's share of the factory. This left Intel in the position of purchasing 3D XPoint wafers from Micron for use in their Optane products however this wasn't enough to fully utilize the facilities production and as such Micron has consistently been losing money on the factory. Micron has decided to sell the factory and is now in discussions with potential buyers the most likely being Intel to take over the facility. Intel has announced that their strategy for Optane products will remain the same and that supply will continue.

Global DRAM revenue reached US$17.65 billion, a 1.1% increase YoY, in 4Q20, according to TrendForce's latest investigations. For the most part, this growth took place because Chinese smartphone brands, including Oppo, Vivo, and Xiaomi, expanded their procurement activities for components in order to seize the market shares made available after Huawei was added to the Entity List by the U.S. Department of Commerce. These procurement activities in turn provided upward momentum for DRAM suppliers' bit shipment. However, clients in the server segment were still in the middle of inventory adjustments during this period, thereby placing downward pressure on DRAM prices. As a result, revenues of most DRAM suppliers, except for Micron, remained somewhat unchanged in 4Q20 compared to 3Q20. Micron underwent a noticeable QoQ decline in 4Q20 (which Micron counts as its fiscal 1Q21), since Micron had fewer work weeks during this period compared to the previous quarter.

Crucial, Micron's global consumer brand of memory and storage, today launched an expansion of its award-winning portable solid-state drive (SSD) portfolio to offer consumers more options for external storage performance, capacity and value at any price point. The new products include the high-capacity 4 TB portable SSD at a RRP of 489.95 USD, and a new 500 GB portable SSD for a wallet-friendly RRP of 69.95 USD. Consumers looking to store large gaming libraries or more movies for long road trips will find an ideal solution in the Crucial X6.

With read speeds up to 800 MB/s, the 4 TB drive performs up to 5.6 times faster than portable hard drives in the market and are drop-proof up to 6.5 feet. Similar to the existing products in the Crucial X6 portable SSD lineup, the 4 TB and 500 GB versions deliver compact portable SSDs in these capacities to consumers for the first time. The entire award-winning Crucial portable SSD product line is compatible with the latest USB-C-enabled devices, such as PCs, Macs, PlayStation 5, Android devices and more. When used with the Crucial USB-C to USB-A adapter, the portable drives also work with PS4, Xbox One, XBOX Series S|X and other USB-A devices.

Micron Technology, Inc. today announced that it has begun sampling the industry's first automotive low-power DDR5 DRAM (LPDDR5) memory that is hardware-evaluated to meet the most stringent Automotive Safety Integrity Level (ASIL), ASIL D. The solution is part of Micron's new portfolio of memory and storage products targeted for automotive functional safety based on the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 26262 standard.

Micron's functional safety-evaluated DRAM is compatible with advanced-driver assistance system (ADAS) technologies, including adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking systems, lane departure warning and blind spot detection systems. Micron's LPDDR5's high performance, superior power efficiency and low latency provide the requisite performance and headroom to keep pace with increasing bandwidth requirements of next-generation automotive systems.

"Autonomous vehicles promise to make our roads safer, but they need powerful, trusted memory that can enable real-time decision-making in extreme environments," said Kris Baxter, corporate vice president and general manager of Micron's Embedded Business Unit. "To fulfill this growing market need, we've optimized our automotive LPDDR5 to deliver the utmost performance, quality and reliability for the smart, safe cars of tomorrow."