SK Hynix and SanDisk Launch HBF Standard to Address AI Memory Bottlenecks

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SK Hynix and SanDisk announced the HBF standard for High Bandwidth Flash through the Open Compute Project. The new storage layer sits between HBM and SSD, offering 512GB capacity and bandwidth ranging from 0.4TB/s to 3.0TB/s. This AI and crypto news represents a step toward addressing memory bottlenecks in AI systems. SK Hynix also unveiled its 10th-generation 375-layer 4D NAND wafer, delivering 2.5x better performance per watt. This token launch news underscores hardware innovation in the crypto and AI sectors.

Huo Xing Finance reports that on August 4, according to a press release PDF issued by SK Hynix’s newsroom, SK Hynix and SanDisk have jointly released the first standard specification for HBF (High Bandwidth Flash) via the OCP, and demonstrated related AI memory solutions at FMS 2026 in Santa Clara, California. HBF is positioned as a new storage layer between HBM and SSD. According to SK Hynix, HBF aims to leverage NAND technology to deliver higher capacity while achieving data transfer speeds approaching those of HBM, addressing the “memory wall” caused by the expansion of AI inference. The initial specification supports capacities up to 512GB, based on 8-layer and 16-layer NAND die stacking, with bandwidth divided into three tiers ranging from approximately 0.4TB/s to 3.0TB/s. The interconnect uses UCIe, enabling more flexible integration with processors such as GPUs and CPUs in the future. This announcement coincides with significant volatility in memory stocks. In July, AI memory trading sharply cooled; Barron’s reported that SanDisk and Micron fell approximately 47% and 29% respectively that month, while the Roundhill Memory ETF dropped about 32%. However, sentiment began to recover in August, with the PHLX Semiconductor Index rising over 1% on Monday, NVIDIA climbing nearly 3%, and both Micron and SanDisk rebounding. Markets remain concerned about prior overvaluation but continue seeking evidence that demand for AI infrastructure has not softened. From this perspective, the significance of the HBF standard extends beyond a new product launch—it points to the next phase of AI infrastructure: compute clusters will no longer compete solely on GPU count; memory bandwidth, capacity, power efficiency, and data movement efficiency will also become system performance bottlenecks. By disclosing the standard through OCP, SK Hynix and SanDisk aim to establish HBF as an open ecosystem rather than a proprietary specification. Google and Tenstorrent have already joined the HBF consortium, and SK Hynix will discuss with Google DeepMind and SanDisk at FMS how HBF can help overcome memory bottlenecks. The press release also revealed that SK Hynix publicly unveiled its 10th-generation 375-layer 4D NAND wafer and products for the first time, claiming a 2.5x improvement in performance per watt over the previous generation, with plans to begin mass production of high-performance, high-capacity eSSDs based on this technology in early next year. This provides fresh fundamental support for recent market pricing around enterprise SSD and NAND price increases and rising AI data center storage demand.

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