Samsung may push back HBM5E plans due to D1d DRAM uncertainty
HBM5E plans may be pushed back as Samsung quietly shelved its mass production plans for D1d DRAM, its 10nm-class 7th-generation memory process.
Sources familiar with internal operations (viaΒ Chosun) confirmed that the management pulled the plug after reviewing D1d DRAM yield numbers that simply didnβt justify the investment. Without a stable D1d supply, HBM5E doesnβt ship.
D1d isnβt just another node; itβs the backbone of HBM5E, Samsungβs 9th-generation high-bandwidth memory. Earlier HBM generations, from HBM4 through HBM5, can lean on the more mature 1c DRAM process.
This creates a compounding problem for Samsungβs AI ambitions at a moment when the market for high-bandwidth memory is as competitive as itβs ever been. HBM is no longer a niche product, but the beating heart of AI accelerator systems.
Back in March, at GTC 2026 in San Jose, Samsung Memory VP Hwang Sang-jun told the audience that D1d would serve as the core DRAM for HBM5E.
Somewhere around 400 people assigned to the D1d mass production task force are idle.
The roadmap is now under comprehensive review. Samsung says it will keep working on yield improvement and delay mass production indefinitely until targets are met, while no timeline has been set.
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