Samsung Aims to Outpace TSMC with GAA Technology and Memory-Centered Supercomputer by 2028

On May 4th, Samsung Semiconductor held a speech at KAIST (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology), where Kye Hyun Kyung, the President of Samsung Device Solutions, presented Samsung's vision for catching up with its competitor, TSMC.

Kye Hyun Kyung acknowledged that Samsung's foundry technology is "behind TSMC." He explained that Samsung's 4nm technology is about two years behind TSMC, and its 3nm process is about a year behind.

However, Kye Hyun Kyung also expressed that things will change by the time they reach 2nm, boldly predicting that "we can surpass TSMC within five years."

Samsung's ambition to outpace TSMC in the next five years stems from its plan to use Gate All Around (GAA) technology from the 3nm manufacturing process. In contrast, TSMC won't use GAA until it reaches a production volume of 2 million.

GAA is a production process that allows Samsung to produce chips that are smaller (45%) and consume less energy (50%) than the process currently used by TSMC. Kye Hyun Kyung stated that "customers have responded well to Samsung Electronics' 3nm GAA process."

Kye Hyun Kyung also mentioned that Samsung expects storage semiconductors to become more important in developing AI servers and surpassing Nvidia GPUs. He stated that Samsung will "ensure that a supercomputer centered on memory semiconductors can be created by 2028."

Recently, Samsung reported that its 4nm chip production yield has improved and is approaching the level of its 5nm technology. The next generation 4nm process will provide even higher yields.

Industry insiders have revealed that AMD has chosen Samsung Electronics as its partner for 4nm processors. Additionally, Google will commission Samsung Electronics to produce its Pixel 8 smartphone's Tensor 3 chip using Samsung Electronics' third-generation 4nm process node.