While the prospects for a tie-up between Google and CXMT were not too encouraging to begin with, a seasoned analyst has just decimated those odds with his less-than-enthusiastic take. Even so, there still appears to be enough room within the language used by the originator of this Google-CXMT tie-up tidbit to warrant continued vigilance.
Ming Chi-Kuo states that Google has "no concrete plan to procure memory chips from CXMT"
We reported last week that, according to the X account SouthernValue, Google was mulling the procurement of precious DRAM chips from China's CXMT.
Also, when asked about their source at the time, SouthernValue had replied with a terse "Sundar Pichai," referring to the CEO of Google's parent company, Alphabet.
Now, however, Ming Chi-Kuo has come forward with a decidedly negative take on the prospects of such a deal, noting that "Google currently has no concrete plan to procure memory chips from CXMT."
In response, SouthernValue appears to be taking refuge within the wording of their original post, highlighting the apparent disparity between the certainty conveyed by the term "concrete plan" and the deliberate fuzziness denoted by their post. SouthernValue has also clarified that their source was an "exec in the server supply chain."
Do note that the potential deal, if it does materialize, is likely to relate to the next-gen Humufish TPUs, especially as Google is reportedly targeting a volume of 3.5 million units for these custom AI chips by the end of 2028.
At ant rate, Google's potential move comes at a time when CXMT is not only preparing for an IPO but also aggressively expanding its capacity, to the tune of 300,000 wafers per month by the end of this year from its current capacity of just around 200,000 wafers per month.
Interestingly, Reuters reported recently that the U.S. was preparing to blacklist China's DeepSeek, CXMT, and around 100 other entities last year but had held off to "avoid escalating tensions with Beijing."
Meanwhile, as to the rationale behind Google's possible move, look no further than Apple, whose CEO Tim Cook declared just last week that memory prices, which are a function of scarcity, have now become "unsustainable," and that price hikes have become "unavoidable" for Apple.
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