2023-08-26 10:02:27
Artificial intelligence (AI) chips are out of stock, and both Huida H100 and A100 chips use TSMC’s CoWoS advanced packaging, but CoWoS production capacity is limited and needs to be ramped up. According to the analysis of the legal person, the interposer required for CoWoS packaging is in short supply due to the complexity of the key process and the prolonged delivery of high-precision equipment, which affects the CoWoS packaging schedule and AI chip shipments.
Large language model training and inference generative AI (Generative AI) applications drive the market for high-end AI servers and high-performance computing (HPC) data centers. The supply of general-purpose graphics processing units (GPGPUs) integrated with high-bandwidth memory (HBM) is in short supply. , the major manufacturers Huida (Nvidia) A100 and H100 graphics chips are seriously out of stock.
Research firm TrendForce pointed out that AI and HPC chips have a large demand for advanced packaging technologies, among which TSMC’s 2.5D advanced packaging CoWoS technology is currently the main adopter of AI chips.
According to the analysis of American foreign-funded legal persons, Huida is the largest customer using TSMC’s CoWoS packaging. For example, Huida’s H100 graphics chip adopts TSMC’s 4nm advanced process, and the A100 graphics chip adopts TSMC’s 7nm process, both of which use CoWoS technology. Huida accounts for TSMC’s CoWoS production capacity accounts for regarding 40% to 50%.
As for the L40S graphics chip launched by Huida in early August, it does not use HBM memory, so it will not use TSMC’s CoWoS package.
Industry insiders pointed out that general-purpose graphics processors use higher-standard high-bandwidth memory, and need to integrate the core die (die) through 2.5D advanced packaging technology, while the front-end chip stacking (Chip on Wafer) process of CoWoS packaging, It is mainly manufactured in the fab through 65nm and performs operations such as through-silicon via etching, and then stacked chips are packaged on the substrate (Wafer on Substrate).
However, TSMC’s CoWoS packaging production capacity is tight. At the corporate briefing in late July, TSMC estimated that its CoWoS production capacity will double, but the short supply situation will not be alleviated until the end of next year. TSMC also announced in late July that it would spend nearly NT$90 billion to set up an advanced packaging fab in the Tongluo Science Park under the jurisdiction of Zhuke. season.
Huida Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress revealed at an online investor meeting on August 24 that Huida has developed and certified the production capacity of other suppliers in the key process of CoWoS packaging, and it is expected that the supply will gradually increase in the next few quarters. Huida continues to cooperate with suppliers to increase production capacity.
According to the supply chain information on the integration of AI chip manufacturing by American foreign-funded legal persons, CoWoS production capacity is the main reason for the bottleneck in the supply of AI chips. According to the analysis of sub-system foreign-funded legal persons, the CoWoS packaging capacity is tight, and the key reason is that the interposer is in short supply. It is complex, and capacity expansion requires more high-precision equipment, but the lead time is prolonged, existing equipment also needs to be cleaned and inspected regularly, and the TSV process takes longer, which affects the CoWoS packaging schedule.
The legal person pointed out that in addition to TSMC, this year, including UMC and ASE Investment Control’s silicon pin precision, will also gradually expand CoWoS production capacity.
Taiwanese factories are also actively deploying 2.5D advanced packaging interposers. TSMC revealed at the North American Technology Forum in late April that it is developing a CoWoS solution for redistribution layer (RDL) interposers, which can accommodate more high-bandwidth memory stacks; The law conference in the second half of the year also stated that it will accelerate the provision of silicon interposer technology and production capacity required by customers.
The American foreign-funded legal person revealed that TSMC is transferring part of its silicon interposer (CoWoS-S) production capacity to organic interposer (CoWoS-R) to increase interposer supply.
ASE Investment Holdings also stated at the legal meeting in late July that it is cooperating with fabs including advanced packaging interposer components; IC design service factory Creative pointed out in July last year that it will continue to lay out interposer wiring patents and support TSMC’s silicon interposer and organic interposer technology.
(Author: Zhong Rongfeng. First image source: shutterstock)
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