Report: Samsung's HBM4/HBM4E production may double next year, with its product share rising from 40% to 80%.

Samsung Electronics is betting heavily on next-generation high-bandwidth memory, and the company is shifting its focus entirely to high-value-added products in the AI storage chip competition.

According to the Seoul Economic Daily, Samsung Electronics plans to increase the outsourced cleaning volume of "glass substrates," an essential component of its HBM (Hardware Body Manufacturing) process, from 20,000 wafers per month this year to 50,000 wafers per month next year, a 2.5-fold increase. Industry insiders predict that the actual production volume of HBM4 and HBM4E will at least double next year compared to this year. Meanwhile, Samsung's overall monthly HBM wafer input is expected to expand from approximately 180,000 wafers this year to approximately 250,000 wafers next year, an increase of nearly 40%.

Behind the production expansion is Samsung's strategic focus on high-generation products. As mass production of the HBM4E gradually rolls out, the HBM4 series' share of overall HBM shipments is expected to increase significantly from about 40% this year to about 80% next year. This structural shift means that Samsung will allocate more production capacity resources to high-profit products.

The surge in demand for glass substrates reflects the logic of capacity expansion.

Glass substrates are a key consumable in the HBM manufacturing process. During the grinding, thinning, and drilling of DRAM wafers, glass substrates are attached to the back of the wafers to prevent them from warping or cracking.

Because HBM requires stacking multiple layers of DRAM chips within a limited thickness, the importance of wafer thinning technology and warpage control processes increases as the number of stacked layers increases. Samsung's HBM4 and HBM4E, which are being expanded significantly, are both based on high-stack products with 12 or more layers, which places even more stringent requirements on the glass substrate process.

According to the Seoul Economic Daily, Samsung's monthly demand for glass substrates has increased from 10,000 pieces last year to 20,000 pieces this year, and is expected to further increase to 50,000 pieces next year. Industry analysts point out that even considering the reusability of glass substrates after cleaning, and the fact that actual usage varies depending on process input methods and yield rates, the 2.5-fold increase in demand still strongly points to the expectation that the production of HBM4 series will more than double.

Product structure is rapidly shifting towards higher generations.

Regarding mass production, Samsung began mass production and shipping of HBM4 in February of this year. This product uses 10nm-class sixth-generation (1c) DRAM and a 4nm substrate chip. In May, Samsung also provided samples of the 12-layer HBM4E version to customers such as Nvidia.

Industry experts predict that with the HBM4E entering full-scale mass production next year, the HBM4 series' share of Samsung's overall HBM shipments will surge from approximately 40% this year to around 80%. One industry insider stated, "While expanding HBM production, Samsung seems to be placing the high-value-added HBM4 at the core."

This product structure shift will directly improve the overall profitability of Samsung's HBM business and strengthen its competitive position in the AI accelerator storage market.

High stacking process requirements drive supply chain coordination

Samsung's latest capacity expansion has significantly boosted its upstream supply chain. Outsourced cleaning of glass substrates will increase fivefold from 10,000 pieces per month to 50,000 pieces per month within two years, leading to a corresponding increase in orders for related suppliers.

From an industry trend perspective, the continuous increase in the number of HBM stacking layers—evolving from the early 8 and 12 layers to even higher layers—has made the bottleneck effect of wafer thinning and support processes increasingly prominent in the entire manufacturing process. The rapid growth in demand for glass substrates is not only a direct reflection of Samsung's capacity expansion, but also reflects the increased material consumption intensity brought about by the increased complexity of high-stack HBM processes.

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