Overview

• Saimemory will formally launch in July 2025 with SoftBank as CFO, Intel as CTO and University of Tokyo as CSO under a former Toshiba executive as CEO.
• The joint venture raised 10 billion yen ($69.7 million) in initial funding, including 3 billion yen from SoftBank and plans to seek additional Japanese government support.
• The project targets a prototype by 2027 and aims to assess mass-production viability for a stacked DRAM that consumes less than half the power of existing high-bandwidth memory.
• As a fabless design and IP management firm, Saimemory will use Intel’s chip-stacking expertise and University of Tokyo data-transmission patents rather than build its own foundry.
• The initiative supports Japan’s strategy to revive its semiconductor sector and challenge South Korean dominance in AI memory, with SoftBank set as a priority customer if development succeeds.