Samsung's HBM chips reportedly fail Nvidia tests due to heat and power consumption woes

Samsung Electronics' latest high bandwidth memory (HBM) chips have yet to pass Nvidia's tests for use in the U.S. firm's AI processors due to heat and power consumption problems, three people briefed on the issues said.

The problems affect Samsung's HBM3 chips, which are the fourth-generation HBM standard currently most used in graphics processing units (GPUs) for artificial intelligence, as well as fifth-generation HBM3E chips that the South Korean tech giant and its rivals are bringing to market this year, they said.

The reasons for Samsung failing Nvidia's tests are being reported for the first time.

Samsung said in a statement to Reuters that HBM is a customized memory product requiring "optimization processes in tandem with customers' needs," adding that it is in the process of optimizing its products through close collaboration with customers. It declined to comment on specific customers.

Nvidia declined to comment.

HBM — a type of dynamic random access memory or DRAM standard first produced in 2013 in which chips are vertically stacked to save space and reduce power consumption — helps process massive amounts of data produced by complex AI applications. As demand for sophisticated GPUs has soared amid the generative AI boom, so has demand for HBM.

Satisfying Nvidia — which commands around 80% of the global GPU market for AI applications - is seen as key to future growth for HBM manufacturers — both reputationally and in terms of profit momentum.

Samsung has been trying to pass Nvidia's tests for HBM3 and HBM3E since last year, the three sources said. According to two of the people, the results of a recent failed test for Samsung's 8-layer and 12-layer HBM3E chips came in April.

It was not immediately clear if the problems