China's CXMT Hits 90% Yield on 17nm DDR5 Chips, Closing Gap With Global Leaders

Chinese memory maker CXMT has achieved a major milestone: its DDR5 chips, built on a claimed 17-nanometer process, now reach a 90% yield. That progress allows the company to significantly boost shipment volumes and narrow the gap with global leaders like Micron.

According to Chinese outlet MyDrivers, several PC makers have started using CXMT's memory in their products. Acer and ASUS are among the first, selling devices with these chips mainly in mainland China and emerging markets.

U.S. companies are more cautious. Dell has completely banned CXMT chips from its products, while HP uses them only in devices destined for mainland China. Apple, as earlier reports indicated, is pursuing a similar strategy and has lobbied the U.S. government for permission to use CXMT chips in its Chinese-market products.

However, sources say the use of CXMT chips in Acer and ASUS devices remains limited. The restraint stems from concerns about how the three biggest memory makers — SK hynix, Micron, and Samsung Electronics — might react.

CXMT is still constrained in its ability to ship volumes comparable to those of the market leaders. Additionally, U.S. sanctions prevent the company from using advanced EUV lithography tools that competitors employ to produce more sophisticated chips on 10-nanometer-class nodes, including Micron's 1-gamma. That limits the Chinese firm's further growth.