Samsung Promotes Mature 4nm FinFET Process for AI Chips, HBM4, and Autonomous Driving
The company is betting on a proven 4nm process that combines stability with performance, suitable for AI accelerators and HBM4 logic dies.
Samsung bets on maturity: why a proven 4nm process matters more than the nanometer race
Introduction
In recent years, the semiconductor industry has been obsessed with the race for the "holy grail"—the smallest possible technology node. 5nm, 3nm, 2nm—marketing wars between TSMC, Samsung, and Intel created the impression that only the smallest transistors matter. But in 2026, an unexpected shift occurred. The largest chipmaker did not announce another breakthrough in the sub-2nm realm but instead publicly declared the strategic importance of its… 4nm process.
On April 29, 2026, Samsung Electronics announced via its official technology blog the expanded use of its 4nm FinFET process for manufacturing AI chips, HBM4 controllers, automotive, and radio-frequency chips. Behind this seemingly technical statement lies a profound strategic change: mature processes with proven stability are taking center stage in the AI era, where supply reliability and predictable yield matter more than absolute performance.
Event Details and Timeline
Six Years of Maturity
Samsung began mass production of its 4nm technology in 2021. By April 2026, the process had accumulated over six years of manufacturing experience, a solid track record in the semiconductor world. The company used these years for fine-tuning: based on data from real production lines, yield and process stability were improved.
A key metric—yield—reached an impressive milestone. According to SEDaily, Samsung's 4nm process surpassed the 80% yield mark, considered in the industry as a sign of full technology maturity.
Technical Improvements: Numbers and Facts
Despite its maturity, Samsung did not stop developing the 4nm technology. The company reported several significant improvements:
- Reduction in RC delay (resistance-capacitance) by 26% compared to the previous generation—meaning signals inside the chip are transmitted faster with lower losses.
- Support for multiple threshold voltages (Vth)—allowing customers to tailor designs from ultra-low-power mobile chips to high-performance AI accelerators.
- Optical shrink technology for the SF4U variant, which reduces the physical chip area without changing its logical structure, improving performance, power efficiency, and density.
Customer Base: From NVIDIA to Automakers
The process maturity attracted major customers. According to industry sources:
- Groq (recently acquired by NVIDIA) ordered production of its LPUs (Language Processing Units) on Samsung's 4nm technology.
- Ambarella, Baidu, Faraday, IBM also use Samsung's 4nm capacity.
- South Korean companies FuriosaAI and Rebellion are making chips on the same process.
- Samsung's own memory division uses 4nm for the HBM4 base die.
Impact and Significance
The AI Era Demands Stability, Not Records
The key idea Samsung promotes is simple: for large AI chips, supply stability and predictable yield are more important than maximum theoretical performance. AI accelerators (e.g., NVIDIA GPUs or Groq LPUs) have large die architectures. The larger the die, the harder it is to achieve acceptable yield on a new, "immature" process.
As a Samsung representative put it: "The 4nm process is a process that is well done and also delivers performance." This is a pragmatic approach: instead of struggling with low yield on 2nm (where Samsung reportedly has not yet achieved desired metrics), the company offers customers what works here and now.
HBM4: High Performance in a Tight Space
The role of the 4nm process in producing HBM4—the sixth generation of high-bandwidth memory—is particularly important. HBM4 requires processing huge amounts of data in an extremely limited physical space, creating stringent requirements for power management and heat dissipation.
Samsung's 4nm process, according to the company, is ideal for this architecture: it reduces power loss while increasing integration density. The HBM4 base die, manufactured on the 4nm process, delivers the necessary bandwidth without overheating.
Automotive and RF Electronics: Reliability First
Automotive chips and radio-frequency (RF) components have special requirements: long service life in extreme conditions and zero tolerance for failures. "Provocative" 2nm technologies, where long-term effects (e.g., transistor degradation) are not yet fully understood, are currently unacceptable for the automotive industry.
In contrast, the mature 4nm process has already proven its reliability, making it the preferred choice for autonomous driving systems and next-generation telecommunications equipment.
Reactions from Key Players
Samsung: A Two-Track Strategy
It is important to understand that promoting 4nm does not mean abandoning the race for leadership. Samsung is pursuing a two-track strategy:
- Leading edge: The company continues developing 2nm (SF2, SF2P, SF2Z) and even 1.4nm processes, striving to keep up with TSMC in the battle for the smallest transistors.
- Mature nodes: In parallel, Samsung aggressively promotes 4nm and 5nm technologies as a stable platform for conservative customers.
This two-track approach is also explained by the fact that the timeline for 1.4nm has been pushed back from 2027 to 2028-2029. In this situation, 4nm becomes not just "another option" but a key process for generating revenue in the coming years.
Competitors: TSMC and Intel
The market perceived Samsung's announcement as a signal that the company had finally achieved parity with TSMC on 4nm processes. SamMobile directly stated: "Samsung has finally caught up with its competitor TSMC" in terms of yield on this node.
For TSMC, this means Samsung now has a compelling argument for customers who previously moved to the Taiwanese competitor due to Samsung's performance issues. TSMC has traditionally been strong in stability, but now customers have an alternative.
Customers: A Rational Choice
Major technology companies have already made their choice. NVIDIA (through its acquisition of Groq), IBM, Baidu—all are voting with their wallets for Samsung's 4nm platform. This is a rational decision. AI companies cannot afford months of waiting for a new 2nm process to "mature" to an acceptable yield level. They need production here and now, and the mature 4nm gives them that opportunity.
Forecast and Conclusions
The Coming Years: The Rise of Mature Processes
Interest in proven technology nodes is expected to grow in 2026 and 2027. Reasons:
- AI chips are becoming larger, making production on immature processes economically unviable.
- Automotive electronics require decade-long reliability that only mature processes can provide.
- Global supply chain instability pushes companies to choose predictability.
In 2025, Samsung began mass production of the improved SF4U version (with optical shrink), and by 2026-2027, the customer base is expected to expand, possibly including orders from NVIDIA.
What About the Nanometer Race?
The postponement of 1.4nm to 2028-2029 is a warning sign. It seems physical limitations are beginning to overtake marketing promises. Transistors are becoming so small that quantum effects (electron tunneling) start to interfere with normal operation.
Likely, 2nm and 1.4nm will become the "final frontier" for the classic scaling model (Moore's Law). Further development will go either toward 3D integration (stacking transistors on top of each other) or toward new materials (graphene, molybdenum disulfide). In this context, the 4nm process could remain the industry's "workhorse" for another 5-7 years.
Conclusions
Samsung's April announcement is an acknowledgment of a new reality. Moore's Law is slowing down, and the value of technological maturity is increasing. By focusing on the 4nm process, the company is not "giving up" in the technology race but making a smart, pragmatic move to earn revenue here and now in the fastest-growing market—AI chips and HBM4.
"The 4nm FinFET process is equipped with scalability to address a wide range of applications based on mature manufacturing competencies," Samsung Electronics summarizes. "It is a platform capable of consistently delivering the performance and efficiency that customers need."
In a world where every nanometer is becoming harder to achieve, betting on maturity may prove to be the most forward-looking strategy. While competitors struggle with 2nm and its 50% yield, Samsung quietly supplies hundreds of thousands of stable chips to the largest AI market players. Sometimes "good and proven" works better than "new and broken."
— Editorial Team
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