TSMC Weighs Making 3D DRAM at Nvidia's Request, Potentially Becoming a Fourth Memory Supplier

• Dispatched: Nov 7, 2026 · 09:38 ET (14:38 UTC)

In one sentence: TSMC is drawing up plans to produce next-generation 3D DRAM at the request of its largest customer, Nvidia; if it proceeds, it would compete directly with Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix and Micron in the memory market for the first time.

Details:

• The Information reported on Friday, November 6 (citing two people with direct knowledge of the matter) that TSMC recently began charting plans to make 3D DRAM at Nvidia's request; Reuters relayed the report the same day, and Bloomberg also picked it up. TSMC and Nvidia did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment, and TSMC said it does not comment on market rumors, restating its focus on its core foundry business.
• 3D DRAM is a next-generation memory architecture that stacks memory cells vertically to raise capacity, different from HBM, which stacks multiple DRAM dies.
• The effort is reportedly led by Hsu Kuo-chin, a vice president who oversees advanced packaging at TSMC. The company is weighing two routes: building a new memory fab (one account names Taiwan's Central Taiwan Science Park as a possible site) or acquiring an existing plant and converting it for memory production.
• This is only at the plan-drafting stage: no factory location, investment budget, wafer target, product, customer qualification or production date has been identified.

Why it matters: Against a backdrop of memory shortages, the world's largest contract chipmaker entering memory could reshape the supply-and-pricing landscape dominated by Samsung, SK Hynix and Micron — a long-term competitive signal for the holdings. The near-term impact is limited: Samsung has already priced and allocated its 2027 HBM volumes, SK Hynix is sold out through 2029, and Micron expects shortages to last until 2028; Samsung, SK Hynix and Micron are themselves developing 3D DRAM, and TSMC has no track record of mass-producing memory. The next thing to watch is whether TSMC makes a formal investment decision.

Source links:

• Reuters relay (via 985 The River)

• JKN (citing Reuters)

• AI Agent Update (The Information via Reuters) Notes:

• This is a press-report account (The Information citing two people familiar with the matter, relayed by Reuters and Bloomberg); neither TSMC nor Nvidia has officially confirmed it. No investment advice.

• Publication time: Friday, November 6, 2026, U.S. Eastern Time (Reuters relay time).