Next-Generation Technology Following HBM 'CXL'... Okins Electronics and Neosem Anticipate

Samsung Electronics Expands Influence in AI Semiconductor Market with 'Compute Express Link (CXL)'
Investors Watching Soaring HBM-Related Stocks Buy CXL Shares
Okins Electronics Hits Upper Limit for Two Consecutive Days

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index has been rising for consecutive days, approaching a new all-time high last recorded on January 4 of last year. Optimistic forecasts suggest that semiconductor demand will increase as the artificial intelligence (AI) market expands. In the domestic stock market, there is a movement to identify stocks that could benefit from the growth of the AI semiconductor market. Following news that Samsung Electronics aims to expand its influence in the AI semiconductor market by leading with next-generation memory technology 'Compute Express Link (CXL),' the stock prices of Korea Circuit, Qualitas Semiconductor, Neosem, and Oskins Electronics have moved.

According to the Korea Exchange on the 15th, Oskins Electronics recorded the upper price limit for two consecutive days recently. Its stock price rose 68.9% in two days, from 3,955 won on the 12th to 6,680 won on the 14th.

Founded in 1998, Oskins Electronics is a semiconductor socket manufacturing and testing service company. Oskins Electronics developed an interface for Double Data Rate (DDR)5 memory. With the opening of the CXL market, there is a forecast that demand for DDR5-based server DRAM will increase, leading to a surge in 'buy' orders.

Neosem, the global market leader in solid-state drive (SSD) inspection equipment, rose 73% in three days. Neosem, which possesses outstanding technology in the SSD inspection field, has succeeded in securing the technology needed in the AI era. It developed and commercialized inspection equipment anticipating the growth potential of the CXL market.

Neosem explained that the majority of its product portfolio focuses on next-generation semiconductors such as DDR5 DRAM, high-stack NAND flash memory, CXL DRAM, and Zen5 SSD. It expects to benefit as demand for next-generation semiconductors increases with advancements in AI, big data, and autonomous driving technologies.

Qualitas Semiconductor, which developed the next-generation interface standard PCIe 6.0 PHY technology, reached an intraday high of 41,350 won the previous day, marking its highest price since its listing on the KOSDAQ market on October 27. It is expected to increase connection speeds by securing compatibility with PCIe 6.0-based CXL. Korea Circuit, which is developing CXL-related products, also rose 24% over two days. Pado, whose stock price plunged last month amid allegations of earnings inflation, has recently rebounded. Pado is expanding its product lineup needed for data centers in the AI era based on technology accumulated through SSD solutions. It is developing CXL memory solutions and CXL switches.

The reason various listed companies with semiconductor-related technologies are attracting attention is due to the learning effect observed from the sharp rise in high-bandwidth memory (HBM) related stocks this year. The market capitalization of Hanmi Semiconductor, a representative HBM beneficiary, jumped from 1.1 trillion won at the end of last year to 5.7 trillion won. As AI technology advanced, the role of graphics processing units (GPUs) in data centers became important. Demand for HBM, mainly used in GPUs, surged, raising expectations that related equipment companies would grow.

Samsung Electronics, which had relatively not been spotlighted in the HBM market, saw movements to buy related stocks as it sought to dominate the CXL market. In May, it became the first in the industry to develop CXL DRAM supporting CXL 2.0. Samsung Electronics is developing CXL DRAM in cooperation with Intel. It has also set a strategy to continuously release related product trademarks and further expand its 'memory super-gap.'

Kim Dong-won, a researcher at KB Securities, said, "With the expansion of AI server applications optimized for CXL and the start of production of processing-in-memory (PIM) semiconductors, mass production of LLW (Low Latency Wide) DRAM specialized for on-device AI is also expected." He added, "Samsung Electronics will be at the center of AI memory changes by securing a next-generation memory roadmap."

CXL can expand the DRAM needed for servers to almost 'infinite,' reducing data bottlenecks and improving power efficiency. Not only global chip design companies such as Intel, AMD, and Nvidia but also Microsoft, Meta, Google, and Huawei have formed an organization called the 'CXL Consortium' to actively discuss standard finalization and utilization possibilities. SK Hynix is also investing to avoid falling behind in the new technology competition by releasing CXL DRAM modules made with the latest DRAM standard DDR5 products.

No Geun-chang, a researcher at Hyundai Motor Securities, predicted, "Given that the core usage of memory semiconductors is developing centered on data centers, various technologies such as PIM, HBM, and CXL are bound to be important."

According to Yole Group, the global CXL market is expected to reach $15 billion (approximately 20.1 trillion won) by 2028. Currently, less than 10% of central processing unit (CPU) types compatible with the CXL standard exist, but it is anticipated that after 2027, all CPUs in the world will be designed to interoperate with CXL.

In the semiconductor market, AI technology development is a crucial factor. Expansion and technological advancement of data centers to support AI technology are expected to continue. Competition to quickly respond to the rapidly growing AI semiconductor demand by securing new technologies is inevitable. Researcher Kim Dong-won forecasted, "AI server shipments next year will be 1.68 million units, a 38% increase compared to 1.22 million units this year," adding, "The proportion of AI servers in total servers will also expand from 9% this year to 12% next year." He emphasized, "The annual growth rate of AI server shipments until 2027 will be 36%, more than three times the 10% growth rate of general servers."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.