SK Hynix Reportedly Considers Intel Foundry for HBM4E Base Die Production

SK Hynix is considering outsourcing production of base dies for its next-generation HBM4E high-bandwidth memory to Intel Foundry, according to a report from South Korea's Herald Economy citing industry sources. The potential partnership would aim to diversify the memory giant's supply chain, which currently relies on Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC).

Strategic Supply Chain Diversification

The move would provide SK Hynix with greater manufacturing flexibility, supply security, and leverage on costs by establishing a multi-vendor structure. According to the report, the company could work with both TSMC and Intel on base-die production starting with its seventh-generation HBM4E product.

This strategy comes as the cost and complexity of HBM components continue to rise. Industry estimates cited by the Herald Economy suggest the HBM4 base die produced by TSMC costs three to four times more than the core DRAM die, creating a significant cost burden for SK Hynix.

The Role of the Base Die

The base die is a critical logic layer at the bottom of an HBM stack that controls the interface with processors like GPUs. As HBM technology has advanced, SK Hynix has shifted from producing these dies in-house to outsourcing them, starting with its HBM4 products which use TSMC's 12-nanometer-class process.

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Adding Intel as a supplier would give SK Hynix more negotiating power on pricing, as long-term supply contracts in the HBM market can limit the ability to immediately pass on higher foundry costs to customers.

Context and Market Impact

The Herald Economy report describes the potential cooperation with Intel as a plan under consideration, meaning the timing and scope of any agreement remain uncertain. The evaluation reportedly extends beyond base dies to include advanced packaging technologies, with SK Hynix assessing both Intel's EMIB and TSMC's CoWoS platforms.

Following the news, shares of SK Hynix and TSMC saw declines in early trading. The report comes as SK Hynix continues to advance its HBM roadmap, having shipped samples of its 12-layer HBM4E to major customers in June.