(Image Source: Photo by Lin Zhijia)

TMTPOST -- Samsung Electronics is reportedly winding down production of its 1z-node 8Gb LPDDR4 memory chips by April 2025, as the tech giant pivots toward higher-end DRAM products amid accelerating global demand for AI-related memory.

According to sources familiar with the matter, Samsung has notified customers to place final orders by June, with shipments expected to conclude no later than October.

The move comes as Chinese smartphone makers increasingly shift LPDDR4 orders to domestic suppliers, allowing Samsung to focus resources on next-generation memory such as LPDDR5 and HBM (High Bandwidth Memory).

In response to market speculation, Samsung Semiconductor told TMTPost on Monday, "We cannot comment on specific customer projects, but our development is progressing as planned."

The global memory chip industry is undergoing a dramatic transformation as demand for AI servers drives unprecedented growth. According to data from CFM Flash Market, global DRAM and NAND revenue reached a record $167 billion in 2024, up 85.5% year-over-year. However, the NAND market contracted 8.5% in Q4, signaling potential volatility ahead. The market is forecast to grow just 2% in 2025.

In the DRAM sector alone, 2024 sales totaled $97 billion, with total capacity reaching 2.5 trillion gigabits. HBM has emerged as a standout performer, fueled by demand from AI training workloads and hyperscale data centers. Analysts expect the share of HBM in total DRAM production to approach 30% in 2025, with volume rising to 2.88 trillion gigabits, as Samsung, Micron, and SK Hynix ramp up production of HBM4 chips.

Samsung’s financials reflect the surge in AI infrastructure spending. The company posted 2024 revenue of 300.9 trillion won ($228 billion), up 16% year-on-year, while net profit more than doubled to 33.6 trillion won ($25.4 billion). Memory was the core growth driver, with DRAM and NAND revenue jumping 91% to 84.5 trillion won, thanks to robust demand for HBM and DDR5 products.

In 2025, Samsung plans to triple capacity for HBM3E, while targeting a 30% market share in QLC SSDs, up from 15% in 2024. At the same time, the company will scale back more than 20% of its conventional DRAM production capacity in favor of advanced offerings like LPDDR5X and HBM.

Samsung began trial production of HBM4 on a 4nm node in January and is expected to deliver samples pending final logic chip validation. "Strong demand for AI servers and SSDs is driving high-value memory products like HBM and DDR5," the company said, noting that generative AI has fundamentally reshaped the landscape for server-grade memory.

CLSA analysts estimate that rising AI and data center demand drove DRAM ASPs up 15% quarter-over-quarter, helping Samsung’s memory division recover from losses a year ago. Bank of America forecasts Samsung's HBM3E revenue will hit $2.4 billion in 2025, accounting for 34% of the global HBM market.

As Samsung aggressively repositions itself for the AI era, its strategic exit from LPDDR4 signals a broader industry shift away from legacy memory toward high-performance, AI-optimized chips.