Samsung to apply AI, big data tech to entire chipmaking process

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Wider use of AI in the chip manufacturing process will also help Samsung catch up to bigger rival TSMC, analysts say

www.kedglobal.com, Jun. 19, 2023 – 

Samsung Electronics Co., the world's largest memory chipmaker, plans to use AI and big data technology in its chipmaking process to enhance productivity and refine product quality.

The move, to be led by Kyung Kye-hyun, president and head of Samsung's semiconductor business, is also aimed at catching up to bigger foundry rival Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) by improving manufacturing yields on wafers.

In partnership with the Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology (SAIT), Samsung's Device Solutions (DS) division, which oversees its semiconductor business, will lead the company's efforts to broaden the use of AI throughout the chipmaking process, sources familiar with the matter said on Monday.

Under the plan, Samsung will seek to apply AI tech to DRAM design automation, chip material development, foundry yield improvement, mass production and chip packaging.

Specifically, the company hopes its AI tech will determine the cause of unnecessary wafer losses, optimize the AI-based manufacturing process and analyze DRAM product defects, sources said.

CHIP PROCESSING TECH REACHING LIMITS

Samsung's move to widely apply the latest AI technology to chip manufacturing comes as chipmakers worldwide struggle to advance their chip processing nodes from the current level.

TSMC and Samsung – the world's two largest foundry or contract chip manufacturing companies for fabless and chip design firms – are competing to advance transistor process technology to the industry's cutting-edge 2 to 3 nanometers.

Chipmaking processes carry a numerical label that loosely denotes the size of the transistors that can be packed on a chip. The number refers to the thickness of the circuitry that can be drawn on the transistor. The lower the number, the more advanced the technology.

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