Shantanu Bhalerao

Winbond secures NOR flash orders from Apple for 3Q24, say sources #Winbond Electronics has grabbed 45nm NOR flash orders from Apple, with shipments kicking off in the third quarter, according to industry sources. The orders may help the #Taiwan-based company capture a larger market share from its Chinese counterpart, GigaDevice Semiconductor Inc.. The recent surge in China's domestic NOR flash manufacturing capacity has resulted in a decline in #memory prices during the latter part of this year, suffering a modest decrease of around 5% compared to the first half, sources said. The prices of NOR flash should have stabilized from their low point in the first half of 2024, sources indicated. However, the market prices have been impacted due to the conversion of a portion of Chinese foundries' fab capabilities to NOR flash, since the demand for logic ICs with mature processes has declined. Consequently, this adjustment has led to a rise in the total inventory of NOR flash. On the demand side, a slower-than-usual peak season in the third quarter, combined with a recession in China's domestic consumer markets, has contributed to the market's oversupply, according to sources. Despite the current total NOR production capacity being slightly greater than demand, prices are unlikely to fall dramatically. If you need support to find the most suitable NOR FLASH for your application, then please reach out to MEMPHIS Electronic - The Memory Competence Center for all memory #technologies - WE KNOW MEMORY ❤️🤩💪🙏 A very big thank you again to Siu Han , Jessie Shen and DIGITIMES Asia for the full article with more background and insights via the link below 🙏💡👇 https://lnkd.in/e4wTKCNp #semiconductorindustry #semiconductors #semiconductor #tech #it #consumerelectronics #geopolitics #chip #chips #ic #ai #mobile #ic

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#Samsung Starts Mass Production of 9th Generation V-NAND: 1Tb 3D TLC NAND 💡 Samsung Electronics has started mass production of its 9th generation of V-NAND #memory. The first dies based on their latest #NAND #tech come in a 1 Tb capacity using a triple-level cell (TLC) architecture, with #data transfer rates as high as 3.2 GT/s. The new 3D TLC NAND memory will initially be used to build high-capacity and high-performance #SSDs, which will help to solidify Samsung's position in the storage market. Diving right in, Samsung is conspicuously avoiding to list the number of layers in their latest generation NAND, which is the principle driving factor in increasing capacity generation-on-generation. The company's current 8th gen V-NAND is 236 layers – similar to its major competitors – and word on the street is that 9th gen V-NAND ups that to 290 layers, though this remains to be confirmed. Thanks again to Anton Shilov and AnandTech for the full article with more background and insights via the link below 💡🙏👇 https://lnkd.in/d6Ge4w47 #semiconductorindustry #semiconductors #semiconductor #innovation #korea #chip #chips #nandflash #flashmemory #ssd #ssds #it #ai #cloud

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Here’s some good context from CNET on why on-device AI matters for #Snapdragon. It all comes down to three P’s: performance, personalization and privacy. https://lnkd.in/gFyx-CSd

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Here offer Micron N48R：QLC HBM MT29F1T08GBLCEN48R3WC1-R Q’ty：300K samsung V5 256Gb. 6k EP3C16F484C6N EP3C5F256C8N  M393A4K40EB3-CWE server 1. H5WRAGESM8W-N8L Qty:8,000/pcs USD650/pcs D/C:Within 2 years L/T:10Weeks HK EXW 2. KHAA84901B-JC17 Qty:10,000pcs USD480/pcs D/C:21+ L/T:12-16Weeks HK EXW The HBM4 war begins! Memory chip stacking is difficult to solve, Hybrid Bonding is the key to breakthrough SK Hynix, a major Korean memory manufacturer, participated in COMPUTEX 2024 for the first time, displaying the latest HBM3E memory and MR-MUF technology (Mass Re-flow Molded Underfill), and revealed that Hybrid bonding will become a very important part of the chip stack. MR-MUF is a process in which semiconductor wafers are attached to circuits and "EMC" (liquid epoxy molding compound) is used to fill the gaps between wafers or between wafers and bumps when stacking the wafers. At present, MR-MUF technology can make chips closer together, improve heat dissipation performance by 10%, improve energy efficiency by 10%, product capacity reaches 36GB, and can be stacked 12 layers.As for competitors such as Samsung and Micron, which use TC-NCF technology (thermal compression with non-conductive film, non-conductive film thermal compression), it is necessary to convert the material into a solid through high temperature and high pressure, then melt it, and then clean it. The total process More than 2-3 steps, MR-MUF can be completed in one go and no further cleaning is required. Compared with NCF, MR-MUF has about twice the thermal conductivity, which has a great impact on process speed and yield. As the number of stacked layers increases, the HBM package thickness is limited to 775 microns (μm). Therefore, memory manufacturers must think about how to stack more layers within a certain height. This is also a big challenge for current packaging technology, and hybrid bonding (Hybrid bonding) is likely to be one of the solutions.stack more than 20 layers (ie no more than 775 microns) through Hybrid bonding technology. According to Korean media reports, HBM4E will be a 16-20-layer product and is expected to debut in 2028. SK Hynix will use 10-nanometer sixth-generation (1c) DRAM in HBM4E for the first time, and the memory capacity is expected to be significantly increased. (Source of the first picture: Science and Technology News).#china #europe #buy #globalbusiness #headhunter #usa #automotive #automotiveindustry #leadership #motivation #kindness #bestadvice #personaldevelopment #linkedin #hiring #careers #help #employment #happiness #jobs #health #global #world #jobchange #process #plasma #Knlowledgestudy #buyer #globalbusiness #Technology #recycle]\\

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Tackling Data Retention in SSDs (by Anil Burra from Intelligent Memory) 🤩 "SSDs have conquered the market due to their speed, durability, energy efficiency, and small form factor. However, write endurance and data retention are concerns in #embedded and #industrial applications, especially as the technology moves to ever smaller nodes." (Anil Burra) With the scaling of #NAND #flash #technology to higher densities (e.g., Triple-Level-Cell or Quad Level-Cell) and smaller process nodes, data retention becomes more challenging due to increased cell-to-cell interference and reduced margins for charge storage. Therefore, newer #technologies may have shorter specified data retention periods compared to older, more robust #SLC (Single-Level-Cell) or #MLC (Mul ti-Level-Cell) #NAND products. Two key factors affect data retention, the period over which #flashmemory can store #data without loss or corruption, in #NANDflash cells: program/erase (P/E) cycling and operating temperature. A very big thank you to Anil Burra from Intelligent Memory for this insightful article via Electronic Specifier Ltd with more background and insights via the link below 💡🙏👇 - A very good read to an important TOPIC 🤩 https://lnkd.in/eqdH7-N2 #semiconductorindustry #semiconductormanufacturing #innovation #it #ai #ssd #datastorage #automotiveindustry #embeddedsystems #ic #computer #computing #iot #memory #chip #chips #technology #tech

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In the fiercely competitive semiconductor industry, companies are in a constant battle to retain top talent because in the heart of every good engineer is a passionate problem solver, looking for their next challenge. For them, innovation is the currency of success. Yet companies like Qualcomm, Intel, and Broadcom attract tens of thousands every year by dangling lucrative compensation packages to lure them from competitors. Startup leaders don’t have those resources, so they have to work harder to attract the best talent and then fight like hell to retain them. But some of the most successful startup leaders I know take a different approach. Rather than viewing attraction and retention as a fight, they leverage the inherent qualities of their companies as their advantage. They use their nimbleness, bias toward innovation, and their collaborative cultures like superpowers to attract the right people and those usually end up being the reasons why people stay. Take Richard Fung, CEO of The Six Semiconductor, for example. I had a conversation with Richard and asked him to share his approach to motivating his team. His response was like a mini-masterclass on the topic of talent attraction and retention. Richard emphasized that a culture that encourages engineers to dive deep into the intricacies of their craft, understand the systems they’re building, and connect with the end customer is a successful culture. Richard has been using this approach and it's been paying dividends for The Six Semiconductor so in his honor, here are his six key concepts for creating this type of organization: 1. Foster a Learning Culture: Support ongoing learning and skill development beyond employees' core responsibilities. 2. Prioritize Customer Focus: Embed a customer-centric mindset, and encourage employees to enhance user experiences through their work. 3. Champion Problem-Solving: Empower employees to creatively solve challenges with a focus on customer needs. 4. Promote System-Level Understanding: Encourage employees to grasp the bigger picture of the company's offerings and their role within it. 5. Break Down Silos: Promote collaboration to ensure a comprehensive understanding of projects across teams. 6. Offer Meaningful Challenges: Provide intellectually stimulating projects that make a tangible impact on the company's success. What Richard highlighted is that success goes much deeper than getting great people to join. It's about unleashing the full potential of every individual on your team to drive innovation and help shape the company, and ensuring your team heads in the right direction together. I’m thrilled I got to learn Richard’s perspective and believe other leaders can benefit from hearing it, so I shared the video below. My "challenge question" to other startup leaders is this: what are you doing to foster this type of culture in your organization? Either share below or, feel free to DM me. #semiconductorindustry #startup #leadership

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The global investor community has been captivated by the rise of AI, leading to a proliferation of AI startups in recent years. As of our latest count, there are around 200-210 hardware companies focused on AI applications worldwide. However, the challenge remains in distinguishing which of these companies will successfully commercialize their technology and which will remain "great ideas that never came to fruition." In my view, the key element determining success or failure is talent. Developing silicon is tough, and creating chips for AI-centric workloads is even tougher. AI hardware demands deep knowledge in mathematics, computer science, and electrical engineering. Companies often struggle to build teams with the right mix of hardware, software, algorithm, sales, and marketing skills to not only bring their products to life but also sell them to customers who may still be skeptical about AI transformation. This is why I’ve been impressed by the success of Canadian AI hardware startups like Tenstorrent and Untether AI. These companies have assembled world-class teams, developed industry-leading solutions, and successfully brought their chips to market. For years, I’ve believed that Canada is a "sleeping giant" in terms of having world-class talent that many in the global community underestimate. Tenstorrent and Untether AI are winning because they’ve harnessed the human capital available in cities like Toronto. This reminds me of a conversation I had with Hugh Chow, CEO of Canada’s premier startup accelerator ventureLAB when Hugh highlighted that Canada has long been a key player in AI development. Canadian Machine Learning expert Geoffrey Hinton’s seminal research laid much of the groundwork for the innovations we see today. Cities like Toronto have a unique mix of hardware and software talent and offer various career opportunities at startups and established companies, creating a virtuous cycle that attracts even more talent. Hugh and his team at ventureLAB are passionate about the potential of AI to transform sectors like medical tech, drones, education, and elder care which is why they work closely with startup founders such as Niraj Mathur, COO of Blumind, to help them secure the funding and talent needed to strengthen their companies. I encourage you to listen to Hugh’s perspective about why Canada is a formidable region for AI startups. Consider it an “appetizer” because tomorrow I’ll be broadcasting LIVE from ventureLAB’s headquarters in Toronto where you can hear the rest of Hugh’s insights as the “main course”. Check the event link in the comments and I hope to see you there! #semiconductorindustry #startups #artificialintelligence

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Things are finally cooling down. We have Mr. Musk visiting CN negotiating the usage of the data collected for the self-driving Tesla software in their mainland, Blinken is mellowing down the tone against CN to justify the tech restrictions, and a "truce" proposed by Hamas has been accepted. Technically, cooling down 2 of the 3 mayor US war theaters. FSD (Full Self-Driving) software is another cash cow for Tesla. The feature in the US cost around $8,000, slashed down from $12k, and everyone knows the gross margin of software. Entering the Chinese mkt with the technology will provide Tesla with another HUGE source of revenues. Mr. Musk unannounced visit was the cherry on the top of all CN/US diplomatic blast up to date. The Lobbying of Mr. Blinken, Mrs. Yellen and even President Biden helped US nail a truce through technology. The Hamas truce is a step forward in cooling down the middle east theater. Putting a hold in the Chip Wars against CN and deescalating the war in the Middle east will "free" US resources to concentrate somewhere else. Be on the look for shifts in the war between Russia and Ukraine. The US has just accepted a new multibillion military package for the Ukraine and that itself has escalated the 3rd major US war theater. So, in other words, the US cooled down 2 theaters, because the 3rd is about to go wild. Interesting to see the Russian response this week. What do you think, will Russia turn a blind eye, or will they retaliate accordingly? How will the tech industry be affected if there is a major escalation in the conflict? Hope you had a good April, looking fwd to an interesting and prosperous May!

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SK hynix reports record Q1 with soaring demand for #HBM #chips #SKhynix saw first 2024 quarter revenues soar 144 percent as demand for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips rocketed. The #DRAM and #NAND manufacturer reported ₩12.43 trillion ($9.03 billion) in revenues with a ₩1.92 trillion ($1.4 billion) profit compared to last year’s ₩2.6 trillion ($1.9 billion) loss. This was a record first quarter revenue amount. DRAM accounted for 61 percent of its revenue and NAND 35 percent, with the remainder coming from other activities. Thanks again to Chris Mellor and Blocks and Files for the full article with more background and insights via the link below 💡🙏👇 https://lnkd.in/ejUBVCMT #semiconductorindustry #semiconductors #semiconductor #technology #ai #tech #ai #artificialintelligence #semiconductormanufacturing #chips

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In our industry, few moments are as exhilarating as tapeout, however, being recognized as a top semiconductor startup comes pretty close. For the team at Blumind, July 2024 will be one for their record books because they accomplished both! I had the pleasure of meeting co-founder and COO Niraj Mathur at Blumind’s headquarters in the ventureLAB building in Toronto a couple of weeks ago, on the same day as their latest chip tapeout. Niraj was enthusiastic about sharing their story and graciously sat with me to discuss Blumind’s progress, their current chip, and his insights into the ongoing evolution of AI. According to Niraj, AI and machine learning are the most potent driving forces behind the current technology revolution and will fuel unprecedented innovation. This wave has attracted many newcomers to the space, yet as the ecosystem of hardware companies expands, Blumind stands apart with a unique approach. He and co-founder John Gosson view the human brain as the “ultimate machine” for handling the complexity of modern AI/ML workloads and in their view, the challenges associated with data transport are "signal processing problems to solve." This led Niraj and John to focus on analog architectures and modelling their chips after the brain's neural networking capabilities. Niraj is captivating to listen to, and I was fully engrossed as he described Blumind’s thesis. Their end goal is to make high-compute, low-power neural accelerators widespread to enable AI in billions of devices worldwide so people can harness its potential and unlock their own. With a mission this significant, it’s no wonder Blumind was recognized by the EE Times | Electronic Engineering Times as one of the “Startups Worth Watching in 2024”. They nailed it with that call, and I will certainly be watching and cheering for Niraj and his team. I encourage anyone interested in AI to watch the clip below to hear Niraj share his insights about analog compute. And if you want to congratulate Blumind for making the Silicon 100, give them kudos for their accomplishment in the comments section! #semiconductorindustry #artificalintelligence #startups

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Open source software is the foundation for the cloud, mobile devices, websites and we believe also IoT devices in the future. We recently announced Zephyr support on Infineon Bluetooth products. Dave Egan on my team recently wrote a blog post on this new support. 🔍 Here are the top points: 1️⃣ Benefits of Zephyr - Re-use software, bring your own toolchain, faster pace of development 2️⃣ Where do we recommend to use Zephyr vs. Infineon ModusToolBox & AIROC Bluetooth stack? 3️⃣ What's coming next Read the full blog post to discover the advantages of each development environment and how Infineon is empowering developers to take their Bluetooth applications to the next level! 👉 Read the blog here: https://lnkd.in/gVrQUBT5 👉 Read the Zephyr OS 3.7.0 release here: https://lnkd.in/gGw2NBcd

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Should Lattice Semiconductor buy Altera? With no product portfolio overlap, both companies can strengthen each other. Intel needs a cash injection, selling Altera would be a great way to do that quickly. For Lattice, this would leap frog them into the next tier. Combined revenue would be ~$2.2B, still smaller than AMD's Xilinx hence SEC should not have an issue with it. Before anyone says a smaller company buying a larger one, remember Avago's acquisition of Broadcom? This marriage would be great for the employees, customers, industry, and both companies.

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Number of the Day 👍 3️⃣ 0️⃣ 0️⃣ With an absolute industry game changer, Infineon Technologies has become the first company worldwide to successfully increase the production size of gallium nitride (GaN) wafers from 200mm to 300mm in an existing and scalable high-volume manufacturing environment. We can now produce 2.3 times more chips per wafer, allowing for even more efficient production and a stronger presence in the growing GaN market. Looking forward to the electronicaFair in November 2024, when we will present the first wafers to the public. Want to learn more? Check out this interesting article from Reuters https://lnkd.in/d8EQHnhd

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Qualcomm Ushering in the Next Generation of Hyper-Personalized Devices 💡 The emergence of #GenAI is reshaping the #smartphone industry drastically, shifting focus from #hardware such as bigger screens, faster #processors, and more #cameras to delivering a more intelligent, adaptive and personalized user experience. Although hardware advancements have slowed, innovation is still accelerating, with the industry evolving towards hyper-personalization – all powered by #GenerativeAI. It has been about a year since the launch of the first GenAI smartphone and the impact is undeniable. The shipment share of GenAI #smartphones is forecast to reach 19% in 2024. By 2028, this share is expected to reach 54% with shipments surpassing 730 million units, more than 3x the projected levels in 2024, according to Counterpoint Research’s Smartphone 360 Service. Thanks again to Counterpoint Research for the full article with more background and insights, including a FREE Download of a WHITEPAPER based on Qualcomm Keynote delivered during their AI360 Summit 🤩🙏💡👇 https://lnkd.in/ejxWY6-X #semiconductorindustry #semiconductormanufacturing #technology #tech #mobile #phones #artificialintelligence #it #chip #chips #foundry

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I always enjoy speaking with Anshel Sag from @Moor Insights & Strategy. We had the opportunity to chat again when he attended Qualcomm's Investor Day. Check out the video below to learn about Qualcomm's leadership in PCs, XR, Anshel's "oh, snap" moment from Investor Day, and more.

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In this bonus episode - "Free Gold - Understand the value you represent ... The Power of Impenetrable Confidence" in my Semiconductor Leadership Podcast Series. We are close to 1,500 subscribers in just under 3 months. I think we can do 2,000 by the summer. Please subscribe if it is of value to you: https://lnkd.in/diktXgVg In this exclusive bonus episode of the Semiconductor Leadership Podcast, we delve into the often underestimated power of confidence in the high-stakes world of BUSINESS. Discover how to have that impenetrable confidence to shape perceptions, influence decisions, and drive innovation in this fiercely competitive industry. We’ll explore a real-world scenario whereby someone experiments by handing $2,000 worth of gold for free to the random public and where confidence has been a game-changer where you can discuss strategies to build and project this essential quality, and analyze its impact on perceived value both within a company and in the market at large. Tune in to gain insights that could redefine how you lead and succeed in the semiconductor realm. Robert Quinn Ksenia V. Mia Chen

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And the winning spree continues!!! Yet another feather on the cap - showcasing the presentation selected as "Best Paper" at the same prestigious DVCon Japan 2024 - "Optimizing UPF Integration Efficiency through Enabling Automation with UPVM for Unified Power Verification". Silicon Interfaces

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Huawei's triple-fold Mate XT reaches 5 million pre-orders, but converting to actual orders will be challenging 💡 Despite coming at a steep price, pre-orders for Huawei's new Mate XT triple-fold #smartphone on the official online store have already surpassed 5 million as of September 11. However, reports suggest that due to high product costs, high technical difficulty, and yield rate issues, supply in the initial wave will be limited. Converting all pre-orders into actual sales may be challenging. Additionally, since no deposit is required for pre-orders, it's impossible to predict the actual sales numbers based on pre-order figures. At the product launch event on September 10, Richard Yu, director of Huawei's consumer business group, stated that the production costs of the Mate XT are very high. He hoped the yield rate and #supplychain could improve with a high supply volume. Thanks again to Ollie Chang , Jack Wu and DIGITIMES Asia for the full article with more background and insights via the link below 💡🙏👇 https://lnkd.in/e4kqafQF #semiconductorindustry #semiconductormanufacturing #technology #it #ai #consumerelectronics #geopolitics #mobile #phone #smartphones

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Read this report about CEO Pat & Intel. Does not pay a gloomy picture. I hope Intel does make it but they will probably have a further harder time in 2025 and they need to get their shit together in all markets they play in. They need to start to realize that they are _NOT_ number #1 and start to become a bit humble and realize they are in a fight for their life and there will be futher cuts needed both in personel and pay. Look how long time it took AMD to finally come back after their miss with the bulldozer architecure, hint: it took years to get to zen architecture right and many painfull cuts. On the other hand OpenAI has now decided to build their own chips, does this mean that AiX will do the same?

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