Samsung are creating ASIC chips for Cryptocurrency mining
Samsung are creating ASIC chips for Cryptocurrency mining
This boost is due to several factors, first that Samsung’s DRAM and NAND memory are in high demand, secondly that they are selling a huge number of chips for the mobile market and finally that the company have been taking orders from 3rd parties to create other new chips.
In recent weeks it was reported by some outlets that TSMC has been creating more silicon wafers for Cryptocurrency miners than Nvidia, creating a huge number for ASICs (Application Specific Integrated Circuits) to mine cryptocurrencies. This demand for dedicated mining solution is not exclusive to TSMC, with Samsung also receiving a large number of orders for this type of hardware.
Samsung mentions this in their Q4 2017 Financials, with their press release stating that “In the first quarter, earnings are expected to rise on the ramp-up of 2nd generation 10nm process products for this year’s flagship smartphones and growing demand for cryptocurrency mining chips”. This attributes some of their expected Q1 2018 growth to these dedicated mining chips.
In a statement to TechCrunch, a Samsung spokesperson had the following to say, confirming that they are creating mining specific chips while keeping their clients a secret.
Samsung’s foundry business is currently engaged in the manufacturing of cryptocurrency mining chips. However we are unable to disclose further details regarding our customers,
The main problem with ASIC miners is that their circuitry is highly specialised, so much so that the hardware is useless outside of cryptocurrency mining. Contrast this with graphics cards that remain valuable even after a mining crash, though the colossal performance-per-watt advantages and profitability of ASICs counteract this.
Samsung wants to bolster their chip foundry efforts with third-party chip designs, and the cryptomarket are more than happy to take Samsung up on their offer, allowing the company to utilise their infrastructure further and sell more chips to customers. These ASIC deals will also help Samsung gain more recognition as a foundry, taking them a little closer to their rivals like TSMC in terms of brand recognition within the foundry market.
You can join the discussion on Samsung’s creation of dedicated cryptocurrency mining ASICs on the OC3D Forums.