Samsung Electronics’ Device Solutions division is in discussions with AMD about manufacturing AMD chips on Samsung Foundry’s second-generation 2 nm process, known as SF2P, according to a report from Sedaily cited by TrendForce. Samsung’s 2 nm technology is competing directly with TSMC’s N2 and Intel’s 18A, with all three using Gate-All-Around transistor architectures. Industry sources say a decision on moving forward with a formal agreement could come as early as January next year, and they describe actual production as more a matter of ‘when’ rather than ‘if’.
As part of these talks, Samsung is expected to run AMD designs through a multi-project wafer program in the near term so both companies can evaluate SF2P’s performance and yields before committing to volume manufacturing. The chip involved is believed to be AMD’s next-generation Epyc ‘Venice’ server CPU, according to Global Economic News. If the multi-project wafer results meet AMD’s expectations, sources say it could open the door for AMD to adopt a dual-foundry strategy that would pair Samsung with TSMC. This approach would not be limited to server products and could eventually extend to future consumer CPUs, including the ‘Olympic Ridge’ Ryzen lineup.
The report also highlights the Artificial Intelligence focused partnership between Samsung and AMD on high-bandwidth memory. Despite Samsung’s challenges in entering NVIDIA’s HBM supply chain, it has secured a strong position with AMD. Samsung is already supplying HBM3E 12-layer memory for AMD’s MI350 accelerators and is considered well positioned for HBM4, which is expected to debut alongside AMD next-generation MI450 products. From Samsung’s perspective, adding AMD as a foundry customer would further support its recent recovery, with Sedaily noting that Samsung Foundry has picked up momentum after winning orders from major clients such as Tesla and Apple. At the same time, industry sources point to TSMC capacity constraints and rising wafer prices, and they say those factors are making Samsung an increasingly attractive alternative.
