Samsung Electronics is strengthening its strategic partnership with Nvidia as the two companies explore broader cooperation in high-bandwidth memory (HBM), foundry services, and next-generation artificial intelligence (AI) semiconductor development.
Jun Young-hyun, Vice Chairman and Head of Samsung Electronics' Device Solutions (DS) Division, revealed that he held a one-on-one meeting with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang ahead of the Nvidia Korea AI Ecosystem Reception held at the Shilla Hotel in Seoul on June 8.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Jun said the two executives discussed ways to expand cooperation on HBM4 memory and foundry manufacturing, while also exploring long-term opportunities for joint development of future AI semiconductor technologies.
“We talked about how we can collaborate on HBM4 and foundry businesses, and exchanged many positive ideas regarding long-term joint development projects,” Jun said.
The meeting comes as demand for AI computing infrastructure continues to surge worldwide, driving unprecedented demand for advanced memory and semiconductor manufacturing capacity.
Jun noted that Samsung and Nvidia are already cooperating on AI accelerator chips and automotive semiconductors produced using Samsung's advanced process technologies.
“We are working together on autonomous driving chips and Nvidia accelerator chips utilizing 4-nanometer and 8-nanometer process technologies, and we are also discussing cooperation for future-generation products,” he said.
Industry observers believe the discussions could pave the way for broader foundry collaboration between the two companies as Nvidia seeks to diversify its manufacturing partners amid rapidly growing AI chip demand.
Samsung has been investing heavily in its foundry business, including preparations for mass production at its Taylor, Texas fabrication facility, which is expected to play a key role in advanced AI chip manufacturing.
The meeting also highlighted the growing importance of HBM in the AI era. During his visit to Korea, Huang repeatedly emphasized the need for increased memory supply, frequently stating, “More HBM,” reflecting the industry's struggle to meet soaring AI-related demand.
At a separate meeting with SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, Huang said Nvidia expects massive business opportunities in the coming years, driven by its next-generation Vera Rubin and Grace Blackwell platforms.
“Nvidia has a trillion-dollar revenue opportunity ahead of us. That will require enormous quantities of chips, interconnects, memory, wafers, and advanced packaging,” Huang said.
Samsung is considered one of the major suppliers for Nvidia's next-generation HBM4 ecosystem. The company developed HBM4 using its sixth-generation 10-nanometer-class (1c) DRAM technology and achieved data transfer speeds of up to 13 gigabits per second (Gbps), among the highest in the industry.
Last month, Samsung also announced the industry's first shipment of 12-layer HBM4E samples to global customers, further strengthening its position in the AI semiconductor supply chain.
The company's HBM4E solution delivers data transfer speeds of up to 16Gbps and bandwidth of 3.6 terabytes per second (TB/s) per stack, capabilities designed to support large language models (LLMs) and next-generation AI systems.
Samsung is also supplying LPDDR5X memory for Nvidia's upcoming SOCAMM2 modules, which will be integrated into the company's Vera CPU platform scheduled for release later this year.
Industry analysts view the meeting between Jun and Huang as a sign that Samsung and Nvidia are moving beyond a traditional supplier-customer relationship toward a broader strategic partnership encompassing memory, foundry manufacturing, advanced packaging, and future AI chip development.
The Nvidia Korea AI Ecosystem Reception was attended by key figures from South Korea's technology industry, including SK hynix CEO Kwak Noh-jung, LG Electronics President Ryu Jae-cheol, and LG AI Research Head Lee Hong-lak, alongside approximately 30 AI and robotics startups.
As global competition in AI infrastructure intensifies, Samsung's expanding collaboration with Nvidia is expected to play a significant role in shaping the future semiconductor landscape.
