NVIDIA, TSMC, and SK Hynix Deepen Triangular Alliance: Sixth-Generation HBM4 to Enter Mass Production in 2026

According to South Korean media reports, NVIDIA, TSMC, and SK Hynix are forming a "triangular alliance" to jointly advance the development of sixth-generation HBM4 in preparation for the AI era.

SEMI plans to host the SEMICON event on September 4th this year, where more than 1,000 companies, including TSMC, will showcase the latest semiconductor equipment and technologies to promote collaboration and innovation. The main focus of this conference is expected to be the next generation of HBM, particularly the revolutionary HBM4.

SK Hynix President Kim Joo-sun is slated to deliver a keynote speech at the CEO Summit during the event. Following his speech, he will discuss plans for next-generation HBM collaboration with senior executives from TSMC. NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang may also join the talks, further solidifying the triangular alliance between SK Hynix, TSMC, and NVIDIA.

SK Hynix and TSMC have a history of collaboration. In 2022, TSMC announced the establishment of the 3D Fabric Alliance at the North American Technology Forum, bringing memory and substrate partners on board. At that time, SK Hynix revealed its close cooperation with TSMC on HBM technology to support the compatibility of the CoWoS process and HBM interconnectivity. The three-way collaboration was finalized in the first half of 2024, with SK Hynix adopting TSMC’s logic process to produce the foundational interface chips for HBM, aiming for mass production in 2026. NVIDIA will provide product design.

SK Hynix is also expected to showcase the latest research achievements of HBM4 at the event. With TSMC's advanced processes and packaging technologies, power consumption could be reduced by more than 20% compared to the original targets.