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Micron to boost DRAM output with $1.8bn chip fab buy

Seriously, what the fuck is going on with fabs right now?

Micron has found a way to add new DRAM manufacturing capacity in a hurry by acquiring a chipmaking campus from Taiwanese outfit Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation (PSMC).
The two companies announced the deal last weekend. Micron’s version of events says it’s signed a letter of intent to acquire Powerchip’s entire P5 site in Tongluo, Taiwan, for total cash consideration of US$1.8 billion.

Micron finds a way to make more DRAM with $1.8bn chip plant purchase

: Taiwan’s Powerchip sells legacy fab it opened just 19 months ago after spending $9.5 billion

^{Simon Sharwood (The Register)}

#technology

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in reply to Powderhorn

dan

in reply to Powderhorn • 3 weeks ago • •

PSMC sounds like a bootleg TSMC lol

legacy fab it opened just 19 months ago

what

This entry was edited (3 weeks ago)

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e0qdk

in reply to dan • 3 weeks ago • •

By "legacy" they probably mean that they work with the older process technologies, not that the fab itself is old:

The acquisition includes an existing 300 mm fab cleanroom of 300,000 square feet and will further position Micron to address growing global demand for memory solutions
In its May 2024 ’Hooray, we’re open!’ announcement, PSMC said it invested more than NT$300 billion (US$9.5 billion) on the facility, and that it had capacity to produce 50,000 12-inch wafers per month under 55, 40 and 28 nanometer technology nodes.

Those kinds of chips are still very useful for things like cars and washing machines and such where you don't need bleeding edge chip tech.

This entry was edited (3 weeks ago)

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Midnitte

in reply to e0qdk • 3 weeks ago • •

In its May 2024 ’Hooray, we’re open!’ announcement...

Lol?

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MolochHorridus

in reply to Powderhorn • 3 weeks ago • •

Just buying away those chips from entering the personal computer market. Gather around to see our partners new cloud computing marketplace where ownership is a thing of the past!

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tal

in reply to Powderhorn • 3 weeks ago • •

This deal may make matters worse for more buyers, because PSMC used the Tongluo site to make legacy DRAM products – the kind of memory used in less advanced products. With the company now exiting the legacy chip biz, that memory will also become more scarce, giving the laws of supply and demand another moment in which to work their way on markets.

dqindia.com/esdm/microns-acqui…

PSMC’s current DRAM capacity mainly relies on 25nm and 38nm nodes, which restricts DDR4 production to lower-density products.

I guess that that's more DDR4 supply drying up. It's going to be some very scarce years for memory until enough new production comes online.

Micron’s acquisition of PSMC’s Tongluo fab could lift global DRAM supply outlook in 2027

Starting in the second half of 2025, demand for HBM3e and DDR5—fueled respectively by ASICs and AI inference adoption—will improve overall DRAM margins

^{DQI Bureau (DQ)}

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Powderhorn

in reply to tal • 3 weeks ago • •

It's pretty clear that consumers are intentionally priced out of the market so they have to rent compute as a service.

This entry was edited (3 weeks ago)

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tal

in reply to Powderhorn • 3 weeks ago • •

I don't think that memory manufacturers are in some plot to promote SaaS. It's just that they can make a ton of money off the demand right now for AI buildout, and they're trying to make as much money as they can in the limited window that they have. All kind of industries are going to be collateral damage for a while. Doesn't require a more complicated explanation.

Michael Crichton had some way of putting "it's not about you" it in Sphere that I remember liking.

searches

“I'm afraid that’s true,” Norman said. “The sphere was built to test whatever intelligent life might pick it up, and we simply failed that test.”
“Is that what you think the sphere was made for?” Harry said. “I don’t.”
“Then what?” Norman said.
“Well,” Harry said, “look at it this way: Suppose you were an intelligent bacterium floating in space, and you came upon one of our communication satellites, in orbit around the Earth. You would think, What a strange, alie

Michael Crichton had some way of putting "it's not about you" it in Sphere that I remember liking.

searches

“I'm afraid that’s true,” Norman said. “The sphere was built to test whatever intelligent life might pick it up, and we simply failed that test.”
“Is that what you think the sphere was made for?” Harry said. “I don’t.”
“Then what?” Norman said.
“Well,” Harry said, “look at it this way: Suppose you were an intelligent bacterium floating in space, and you came upon one of our communication satellites, in orbit around the Earth. You would think, What a strange, alien object this is, let’s explore it. Suppose you opened it up and crawled inside. You would find it very interesting in there, with lots of huge things to puzzle over. But eventually you might climb into one of the fuel cells, and the hydrogen would kill you. And your last thought would be: This alien device was obviously made to test bacterial intelligence and to kill us if we make a false step.
“Now, that would be correct from the standpoint of the dying bacterium. But that wouldn’t be correct at all from the standpoint of the beings who made the satellite. From our point of view, the communications satellite has nothing to do with intelligent bacteria. We don’t even know that there are intelligent bacteria out there. We’re just trying to communicate, and we’ve made what we consider a quite ordinary device to do it.”

Like, two years back, there was a glut of memory in the market. Samsung was losing a lot of money. They weren't losing money back then because they were trying to promote personal computer ownership any more than they're trying to deter personal computer ownership in 2026. It's just that demand can gyrate more-rapidly than production capacity can adjust.

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Powderhorn
3 weeks ago • •

Micron to boost DRAM output with $1.8bn chip fab buy

Micron finds a way to make more DRAM with $1.8bn chip plant purchase

dan

e0qdk

Midnitte

MolochHorridus

tal

Micron’s acquisition of PSMC’s Tongluo fab could lift global DRAM supply outlook in 2027

Powderhorn

tal

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Powderhorn
3 weeks ago • •