[News] Kioxia Plans to Double Output in Five Years, Ramping Up NAND Flash for AI Data Centers

According to a report from MoneyDJ, citing Nikkei, Japanese NAND flash memory giant Kioxia announced its mid- to long-term business plan on June 5, aiming to double its production capacity by fiscal 2029 compared to fiscal 2024 by expanding production lines at its two main facilities in Japan—the Yokkaichi and Kitakami plants—to support growing demand for NAND flash used in AI data centers. The report also notes that Kioxia plans to begin manufacturing next-generation memory in the second half of 2026.

As the report notes, the second fabrication facility (“K2”) at Kioxia’s Kitakami Plant is set to begin operations in September. It will produce the company’s most advanced NAND flash to date—the eighth-generation “BiCS8.” Kioxia plans to increase the production share of BiCS8, with a goal of surpassing the revenue of existing products by March 2026, as the report indicates. Executive Managing Officer Junichiro Yaguchi, as cited in the report, stated that Kioxia will shift production toward AI-focused products, its fastest-growing segment.

The next-generation memory Kioxia plans to produce—known as Storage Class Memory (SCM)—offers faster data read speeds than NAND flash and higher storage capacity than the DRAM currently used in AI applications, as the report highlights. The report notes that mass production is expected to begin once the technology is validated by AI semiconductor manufacturers.

In addition to expanding next-generation memory capacity, the report notes that Kioxia is also addressing geopolitical risks by considering a shift in its assembly operations—currently concentrated in China—to other regions such as Southeast Asia.

As TrendForce notes, in 1Q25 revenue ranking of the top NAND flash suppliers, Kioxia slipped to fourth place, with both shipment bits and ASP declining due to weak off-season demand. This resulted in Q1 revenue of USD 1.92 billion.

Meanwhile, according to TrendForce, the combined production capacity share of Kioxia and SanDisk reached 30.1% in 2024, surpassing Samsung. In 2025, their combined share is projected to be 29.1%, still ahead of Samsung’s 26.8%.

Read more

• Off-Season Slowdown and Inventory Pressure Drive Over 20% QoQ Revenue Drop for Top Five NAND Flash Brands in 1Q25, Says TrendForce
• [News] Kioxia Urges Bain and Toshiba to Sell Shares, Aims to Double AI NAND Market Share in Three Years

(Photo credit: Kioxia)