Samsung targets full capacity at AI chip manufacturing facilities

Samsung Electronics' semiconductor foundry division has set a target to achieve 100% capacity utilization in the second half of 2026. Currently operating at 70-80%, this represents significant recovery from pre-2024 levels below 50%. Escalating demand for HBM memory, particularly for AI and high-performance computing applications, is driving the growth. Companies including Google, AMD, Qualcomm, and Broadcom have begun negotiations with Samsung for advanced process production, diversifying a customer base historically dependent on single suppliers. The capacity recovery marks a critical juncture for a division that incurred substantial losses in 2025, when 4 and 5-nanometer production lines operated below 50% utilization. Restoring normal utilization would translate additional revenue directly into profit. A key challenge remains stabilizing the 2-nanometer process yield at approximately 70%, currently estimated at 60%, which is essential to convert ongoing negotiations into mass production contracts.