Samsung has agreed to have Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. produce the base die for Nvidia's custom high-bandwidth memory, NVHBM, based on HBM4E technology. The move marks a concession to Nvidia, the world's largest HBM buyer, and aligns Samsung with SK Hynix and Micron, which already source their base dies from TSMC's 3nm process.
The standardization reduces Nvidia's validation burden and simplifies integration across memory vendors. For standard HBM and other customers, Samsung will continue producing base dies in-house.
Samsung is simultaneously validating its own NVHBM base die—a hedge that would let it supply the component if TSMC capacity becomes constrained. That dual-track approach suggests Samsung views the outsourcing decision as temporary leverage rather than permanent exit.
The supply chain realignment underscores Nvidia's manufacturing clout. By dictating a common base die source, Nvidia reduces per-unit qualification costs and tightens control over the critical components feeding its AI accelerator ecosystem. For TSMC, the arrangement locks in foundry revenue from all three major memory makers on one of the most strategically important node generations in years.
