Kioxia and SanDisk have unveiled their next-gen QLC 3D flash memory technology, saying it delivers up to a 60% increase in bit density over their 8th-generation devices. The companies said the new memory surpasses 37 Gb/mm² and sets a new industry benchmark for bit density, performance and power efficiency.
Built on the companies’ CMOS directly Bonded to Array (CBA) architecture, the new generation separates CMOS logic and the memory array onto different wafers before bonding them with high-precision alignment.
That approach, the companies said, improves read and write bandwidth and makes this the first QLC 3D flash memory technology to reach a 4.8 Gb/s interface.
The latest platform also introduces interface upgrades aimed at improving I/O data-out transfer power efficiency, a move designed to address the power and cooling demands of AI and cloud infrastructure.
Key highlights
- 332-layer architecture and an optimized floorplan deliver up to a 60% boost in bit density, reaching more than 37 Gb/mm² versus the 8th-generation.
- A 4.8 Gb/s NAND interface, enabled by Toggle DDR6.0 and the Separate Command Address (SCA) protocol, is designed to unlock the full performance of the interface.
- CBA architecture is intended to improve density scaling, performance and manufacturing efficiency.
- Power-Isolated Low-Tapped Termination (PI-LTT) improves I/O data-out transfer power efficiency.
The companies said the figures are based on their survey as of August 4, 2026, and that the 1 Gb/s figure is calculated as 1,000,000,000 bits per second under specific test conditions that may vary depending on use.
Leadership Comment
Chief Technology Officer at Kioxia, Hideshi Miyajima, said, “As AI continues to underpin the advancement of society, its applications are expanding from generative AI to agent-based and physical AI, while the use of data is becoming increasingly diverse and sophisticated. QLC technology enables the efficient storage of rapidly expanding data volumes, helping deliver greater performance and scalability for AI systems. Kioxia will accelerate development toward the commercialization of its 10th-generation flash memory products incorporating QLC technology.”
Chief Technology Officer at Sandisk, Alper Ilkbahar, said, “As AI training, inference, and hyperscale datacenter workloads drive unprecedented growth in data generation, the storage industry faces increasing pressure to deliver greater capacity, higher performance, and improved energy efficiency. By redefining the performance and efficiency envelope of QLC NAND, our 10th-generation QLC 3D flash memory delivers simultaneous gains in density, bandwidth, and energy efficiency and establishes a new paradigm for high capacity flash storage to provide a scalable foundation for next generation infrastructure applications.”
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