SK Hynix Unveils CXL 2.0 Memory - Q4 Production

SK Hynix recently introduced CXL 2.0 memory during the Intel "Innovation 2023" event, leading to speculation about its strategic alignment with the Intel Sierra Forest market. This cutting-edge product is scheduled for release in the first half of the upcoming year. Notably, Intel Sierra Forest stands as the inaugural server CPU product to support CXL 2.0.

In the era of heightened AI interest, driven by ChatGPT and similar technologies, CXL emerges as the pivotal next-generation solution for addressing key challenges in data processing, latency reduction, speed optimization, and bandwidth expansion, especially relevant for Large Language Models (LLMs).

It is worth mentioning that SK Hynix's CXL 2.0 memory boasts an impressive 96GB capacity, built on a 24Gb DDR5 foundation utilizing the advanced 1a manufacturing process. Mass production of this innovation is anticipated to commence in the fourth quarter of 2023. In addition to product revelation, SK Hynix showcased compelling use cases of CXL, particularly in AI acceleration systems, underscoring its exceptional performance, reliability, security, and ease of maintenance. Complementing this offering, SK Hynix has also developed a specialized CXL memory HM software development kit (SDK) to empower customers in optimizing their server infrastructure.

Beyond SK Hynix's strides in the CXL domain, Samsung Electronics has played an active role in advancing this technology. Samsung initially introduced memory modules supporting the CXL interconnect standard based on DDR5 technology in May 2021. Subsequently, they unveiled the industry's first open-source software solution tailored for CXL memory platform design. Samsung's CXL memory line-up features capacities of 128GB and 512GB, with an innovative CXL standard memory semantic SSD further highlighting their commitment to this technology. Moreover, Micron made its mark in the CXL space with the launch of CXL memory modules in March of the current year.