TSMC's CoWoS Demand Surges as Major Firms Compete

The surge in AI demand has propelled CoWoS to the forefront of advanced packaging technologies. TSMC offers the highest interconnect density and largest package size at a competitive cost. As nearly all HBM systems and AI accelerators utilize CoWoS, leading data center GPUs predominantly feature TSMC's CoWoS packaging. This has prompted key HBM manufacturers like SK Hynix and Samsung to engage with TSMC to secure partnerships with major GPU clients.

As chip manufacturing reaches physical limits, advanced packaging becomes crucial for enhancing computing performance. Chip manufacturers and major storage companies are collaborating closely to develop chip packaging solutions that meet the vast computing needs of AI.

HBM and CoWoS technologies complement each other. HBM's pad design and short trace requirements necessitate 2.5D advanced packaging technologies such as CoWoS.

Through 3D stacking and 2.5D advanced packaging technologies, chip-to-chip vertical interconnections are achieved using TSVs and microbumps, significantly increasing I/O interface count and memory bandwidth. This, combined with 2.5D CoWoS packaging and AI computing chips, fully unlocks performance potential. For instance, NVIDIA's H100 utilizes TSMC's CoWoS packaging, integrating the H100 GPU with six HBM stacks.

TSMC's recent report highlights sustained high demand for CoWoS advanced packaging. The company's goal to more than double capacity by 2024 still falls short of meeting customer needs. Similarly, Samsung is investing in 2.5D packaging technology, internally named I-Cube, aiming to provide comprehensive services from HBM to backend packaging, targeting clients such as NVIDIA and AMD.

Despite this, most AI innovators partner with TSMC to meet AI's ever-increasing demand for energy-efficient computing.

SK Hynix and TSMC maintain a close partnership, recently signing an MOU with plans to produce HBM4 by the year after next. Samsung Electronics Co-CEO Kyehyun Kyung recently visited TSMC to promote Samsung's latest high-bandwidth memory (HBM), hoping to secure adoption by TSMC and reach more GPU customers.

Taiwan's supply chain is poised to benefit from these developments as global manufacturers shift towards HBM, potentially displacing traditional DDR capacity. OEMs and ODMs may obtain more competitive HBM products amid this diverse competition, supporting supply chain development.