SK hynix secures top safety certification for automotive DRAM

(SK hynix)

South Korean memory chipmaker SK hynix Inc. said on Monday that its latest automotive DRAM product, LPDDR5X, has obtained Automotive Safety Integrity Level D (ASIL-D) certification, the highest safety rating under the international automotive functional safety standard ISO 26262.

ASIL-D is the highest level of functional safety applied to systems that are directly related to human life.

The certification is granted by global functional safety certification body TÜV SÜD after a comprehensive evaluation covering the entire process, from development and product design to verification and quality management systems.

SK hynix said that through this certification, it has officially demonstrated its technological competitiveness in the automotive memory market by simultaneously meeting requirements for high performance, safety, and reliability.

The LPDDR5X automotive DRAM is designed to meet the demanding requirements of next-generation vehicle systems, including advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), autonomous driving, and in-vehicle infotainment, by delivering high performance, low power consumption, and high reliability at the same time.

In a software-defined vehicle (SDV) environment, the product is capable of stably processing large volumes of data while minimizing the risk of system errors.

As the share of electronic and electrical systems in vehicles continues to rise, functional safety assurance—beyond simple performance or defect rates—has emerged as a key benchmark for the competitiveness of automotive DRAM.

In response, SK hynix applied a balanced design to the product that incorporates stable data reliability even under extreme conditions, fault notification and self-diagnosis and repair functions, as well as ultra-high bandwidth and low-power characteristics.

“By securing functional safety certification, which global automakers consider most important when adopting products, we have gained meaningful competitiveness in expanding our automotive memory business and strengthening customer trust moving forward,” the company said.