CXMT Pushes HBM3E Production Despite Low Yield
- •CXMT plans to deliver HBM3E samples and begin limited production within two months despite a 20–30% yield.
- •SK Hynix’s yield is about 70%; Chinese AI chipmakers have raised prices by 20–50% amid rising memory costs.
- •Tests reportedly put CXMT’s HBM3E near the older HBM3 level, and the company has sent revised designs to customers.
China’s largest DRAM maker, CXMT (ChangXin Memory Technologies), has delivered HBM3E samples to several Chinese AI chip designers despite yields of just 20–30%, and plans to start limited production within two months, Reuters reported on the 28th local time. The report cited multiple people familiar with the matter. HBM3E is advanced memory used to train and run AI accelerators; it stacks memory chips vertically to increase data-processing speed.
Reuters reported that CXMT’s HBM3E yield of 20–30% is far below SK Hynix’s roughly 70%. Low yield raises production costs, and CXMT’s products are expected to cost more than those of overseas competitors. The United States tightened export controls on advanced HBM products destined for China in December 2024. Since then, Chinese companies have sourced memory through unofficial channels, with procurement costs also rising, Reuters said.
Chinese AI chipmakers Huawei, Cambricon, MetaX and Iluvatar CoreX have raised prices for existing and next-generation AI chips by 20–50% in response to higher memory costs and supply shortages. Performance tests reportedly found CXMT’s HBM3E closer to the older HBM3 generation than to SK Hynix’s product. CXMT has also sent customers a design-revised version intended to improve yield. The report did not specify that version’s performance or how much its yield improved.