At the SK AI Summit on November 4, South Korean storage giant SK Hynix showcased the world's first 48GB 16-layer HBM3E product, with both capacity and number of layers being the highest in the industry.

SK Hynix stated that the AI training performance of its 16-high HBM3E is 18% higher than that of the previous-generation 12-high product, and the inference performance is even increased by 32%. This HBM memory still uses the advanced MR-MUF (mass reflow molded underfill) bonding technology. SK Hynix is also developing a more excellent hybrid bonding.

SK Hynix CEO Kwak Noh-Jung said that the 16-layer HBM market is expected to rise from HBM4. However, SK Hynix has developed the 48GB 16-layer HBM3E in advance and plans to provide samples to customers in early 2025. Kwak shared the company's vision of becoming a "full-stack AI storage provider" at the summit, that is, through close cooperation with all parties, providing a full line of AI storage products covering the DRAM and NAND fields.

In the DRAM memory field, SK Hynix said that in addition to 16-high HBM3E, it is also developing LPCAMM2 based on 1c nm LPDDR5 and LPDDR6. These memory modules are targeted at both the PC and data center markets. In the NAND flash memory field, the enterprise also prepares PCIe 6.0 solid-state drives, high-capacity enterprise-level solid-state drives based on QLC, and the next-generation UFS 5.0 flash memory.

Previously, SK Hynix had announced at the end of September that it had started mass production of the world's first 12-layer 36GB HBM3E product.

SK Hynix expects to use the advanced MR-MUF process to produce 16-layer HBM3E, and at the same time develop hybrid bonding technology as a backup plan.

In addition, SK Hynix also emphasized its competitiveness in the field of low-power consumption and high-performance products. It is developing LPCAMM2 modules, namely 1cnm LPDDR5 and LPDDR6, and is preparing to launch PCIe sixth-generation SSDs, high-capacity QLC-based eSSDs and UFS 5.0.