❯ Samsung and SK Hynix upgrade Chinese NAND plants toward products with more than 200 layers

Manufacturing technology is being upgradedReuters reported on October 21 that Samsung and SK Hynix are upgrading NAND production at their Chinese factories to address customer demand and competition. Both confirmed equipment or technology upgrades; detailed layer counts and output plans come from people familiar with the work rather than full official production guidance.

More layers improve storage densityNAND retains data without power and is used in phones, computers and data-center solid-state drives. The report says Samsung is moving its Xi’an plant toward 286-layer V9 NAND, while SK Hynix is looking to move Dalian from 192-layer products to 240 layers or more. More stacked layers can increase capacity per chip area and affect unit storage costs.

Upgrades differ from factory expansionSamsung says the work addresses global customer demand and does not expand production capacity or add factories. Data centers need storage for models, data and results as well as AI accelerators. Updating processes at existing manufacturing sites offers suppliers a way to improve their product mix.

▮ SIGNALAI infrastructure demand extends into storage, where process upgrades at existing factories can improve density alongside investment in new capacity.