Samsung Reportedly Builds Hybrid Bonding Mass Production Line; Full-Scale Deployment Seen in 2029–2030

　　With next-generation HBM advancing, attention is increasingly turning to the commercialization of hybrid bonding. According to The Elec, citing industry sources, Samsung Electronics is establishing a mass production line equipped with around 50 die-to-wafer (D2W) hybrid bonders at its Pyeongtaek campus to support next-generation HBM and logic semiconductor production. Equipment deliveries and installation are expected to begin toward the end of 2026.

　　However, The Elec notes that Samsung internally expects large-scale hybrid bonding production to begin around 2030. Weekly Post similarly reports that Samsung Electronics aims to begin full-scale hybrid bonding mass production in 2029. The era of hybrid bonding-based HBM is expected to begin with the deployments of NVIDIA’s next-generation AI GPU, Feynman. While Rubin Ultra is expected to use HBM4E, Feynman is highly likely to adopt HBM5 or custom HBM.

　　BESI Remains the Front-Runner as Samsung Explores Alternatives

　　Notably, Samsung Electronics has reportedly selected Dutch semiconductor back-end equipment supplier BESI as its preferred partner for D2W hybrid bonding equipment, The Elec notes. However, the order has yet to be finalized as the companies continue negotiating Samsung’s requested equipment modifications. The report also cites the price of BESI’s hybrid bonder—around KRW 6 billion (approximately US$4.3 million) per unit, roughly twice that of competing products—as a factor contributing to the prolonged negotiations. BESI, which also supplies hybrid bonders to TSMC and Micron, is reportedly reluctant to modify the tool architecture exclusively for Samsung, The Elec adds.

　　While BESI remains Samsung’s preferred supplier, the company is also evaluating domestic equipment makers as alternatives. SEMES, Samsung Electronics’ semiconductor equipment subsidiary, has also reportedly been asked to supply D2W hybrid bonders for the planned mass production line. Industry sources cited by The Elec said the equipment is believed to have passed Samsung’s qualification process. Samsung is also said to be considering Hanwha Semitech as a potential hybrid bonder supplier. Hanwha Semitech completed development of its second-generation D2W hybrid bonder, SHB2 Nano, in February and supplied an evaluation system to SK hynix in April, the report notes.

　　Hybrid Bonding for cHBM and 3D Packaging

　　Hybrid bonding is expected to play a particularly important role in customized HBM (cHBM), The Elec notes. Samsung plans to replace the cHBM base die with a logic die incorporating customer computing IP, enabling it to support external CPUs and GPUs while optimizing data transfer. The company also aims to implement a 3D system-in-package (SiP) structure that stacks HBM DRAM layers directly on the logic die.

　　Separately, Samsung Foundry introduced its next-generation hybrid bonding-based 3D vertical stacking solution, 3D Cube-H, last month, according to The Elec. Designed for next-generation AI chips and high-performance computing (HPC) systems, the heterogeneous integration technology is expected to deliver higher performance, improved power efficiency, and greater bandwidth than existing packaging solutions. Samsung Foundry is currently promoting the technology to customers.