Nvidia's next-generation artificial intelligence (AI) server product has been delayed by more than a year due to manufacturing difficulties, according to a foreign media report. As a result, related stocks across Asian markets, including South Korea, tumbled simultaneously.
According to U.S. business broadcaster CNBC on Wednesday, semiconductor analysis firm SemiAnalysis noted in a recent report that the release of the "Kyber NVL144" rack-scale architecture, which was set to feature Nvidia's Rubin Ultra chip starting next year, has been pushed back by more than 12 months to 2028. Kyber is Nvidia's next-generation AI rack designed to combine 144 high-performance Nvidia chips into one, operating like a giant computer. A rack refers to the basic unit of a data center that bundles graphics processing units (GPUs), power devices, and networking equipment. It is the key device that makes chips and servers operate as one body.
SemiAnalysis pointed out that problems in manufacturing the multilayer printed circuit board (PCB), a core component of the system, led to the release delay. The reason is that with current technology, it is difficult to mass-produce this component, a special PCB that densely connects signals between chips and parts. The multilayer PCB serves as the brain that is essential for AI companies to train and run cutting-edge models.
Beyond the PCB, SemiAnalysis pointed out that the work to connect the ultra-high-speed connection device (NVSwitch) linking GPUs via optical communication has not been completed. In this case, it becomes difficult to expand to large-scale racks.
The plan to join two racks together to build the world's largest scale has also been canceled, SemiAnalysis said, and if realized, one means of expanding Rubin Ultra would be lost.
If SemiAnalysis's claims prove true, Nvidia's plan to develop data centers into AI factories, which CEO Jensen Huang has emphasized, would be delayed by at least a year. On the other hand, some forecast that more opportunities could flow to the PCB industry, where South Korea and others are strong, to fill the lack of technology and quantity. In the long term, some assess that this could create room for competitors such as Google to break into the expansion of the Nvidia-led AI data center industry.
As this news spread, related stocks in Asian markets, such as Japanese PCB manufacturer Ibiden, which counts Nvidia as its largest customer, and Hong Kong's Kingboard Laminates Holdings, at one point fell more than 10% intraday. Bloomberg analyzed that "the outlook for a delayed Kyber NVL144 launch and other content in the post are raising uncertainty over Nvidia's next-generation roadmap."
However, Nvidia did not respond to these points and related reports.
