Sandisk patents NAND-under-GPU HBF, targets AI bottlenecks and Korea tie-ups - CHOSUNBIZ - Chosunbiz

SanDisk has secured a key patent from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for a technology that places high-capacity, high-bandwidth storage memory directly beneath graphics processing units ... Read original →

SanDisk’s HBF architecture—stacking NAND directly beneath GPUs—is a surgical strike at the 'memory wall' in AI inference. Technically, it forces a redesign of SSD controllers, substrates, and thermal solutions, pushing upstream materials suppliers toward ultra-dense interconnects while accelerating heterogeneous packaging like CoWoS-L downstream. On compliance, tightening U.S. restrictions on advanced packaging heighten supply chain risk if HBF relies on U.S.-licensed IP, especially involving foundries in Taiwan, China. Samsung and Micron will likely counter with high-capacity HBM4 modules, whereas SK hynix’s bet on HBF standardization is a strategic asymmetry play amid its HBM market lag. Within 18 months, HBF won’t replace HBM but will become essential for edge AI servers and long-context inference, repositioning NAND from cold storage to near-compute logic—and resetting how storage value is priced.