SK hynix pushes hybrid bonding to HBM5 earliest, not HBM4E
SK hynix said hybrid bonding won’t be ready for HBM4E and may arrive at HBM5 at the earliest, based on Hot Chips 2026 remarks. With HBM cube thickness capped at 775 microns, extra DRAM layers require thinner dies and narrower gaps. HBM4 at 48GB is in customer qualification and 12-Hi is in mass production, while higher pin speeds and more oxide raise thermal burden about 2.2x as stacks grow.