An introduction to the role of semiconductors in today’s global commerce ecosystem that relies heavily on a vast number of devices, interactions, experiences and databases to keep business running

The post A Day in the Life: Semiconductor Technology’s Impact on E-commerce first appeared on SK hynix Newsroom.

Today, even transactions conducted in-person and paid in cash have some element of technology built into them. Behind the scenes, technology is powering everything from inventory management systems to mobile phones being used as payment devices to the security systems built into the online checkout process.

And at the heart of every one of those technologies is a semiconductor that enables the many components to work together behind the scenes so that retailers can customize their online experiences for individual customers, customers can safely store credit card information online or suppliers automatically know when to restock shelves.

Today’s global commerce ecosystem relies on a vast number of devices, interactions, experiences and databases to keep business flowing. Consider the impact that technology has on some critical parts of the commerce experience, such as the following:

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Inventory management systems: Not just for vendors who are stocking shelves but for everyone else along the supply chain, as well – from manufacturers to transporters to distributors. All this data stored and often updated in real-time continually contributes to the era of big data that is upon us.

According to data company Adeptia1, Amazon, as the world’s largest e-commerce site, hosts an estimated 1 billion gigabytes of data across more than 1.4 million servers. Semiconductors play a vital role in managing big data for these companies by processing data, helping to extract relevant information quickly, providing real-time insights, and ultimately determining demand for the future.

Personalization: Online retailers know that consumers want a personalized experience when it comes time to shop. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning technologies not only track buying history but also shopping behaviors, product preferences and promotion engagement – but they need the technology to process that data in real time.

Semiconductors can have a great impact on AI’s expanded capabilities on two fronts, according to research by McKinsey & Company2. The first is to work with partners to develop AI hardware that’s specific to industry use cases, such as retail. The second is to focus on developing AI hardware that enables broad, cross-industry adoption. Consider how some industries – from self-driving cars to advanced healthcare – both have a need for AI solutions but under different circumstances and scenarios.

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Chatbots: Think of them as the online version of salespeople who might approach you in a store and ask if you’re finding everything you need. The pop-up chatbot, originally considered an annoyance of sorts, has evolved to better understand language and tone and engage with customers.

But as the technology stack continues to evolve and power advanced machine learning and artificial intelligence capabilities, those same customer interaction experiences are shifting from less “chatbot” to more “conversational AI.” Now, instead of just understanding the question and providing a best-guess automated reply, which was sufficient for some engagements, the bot can also recognize tone of voice, volume and other cues that might suggest the need for human intervention.

It’s in those critical moments before potential customers become lost customers that the ability of back-end technology to process that data to enable real-time decisions can become table stakes for some types of businesses.

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Devices: Today, we have several ways to conduct digital transactions. We can shop from a browser on a PC, through an app on a mobile phone or tablet or from a connected kiosk. We can pay with any number of credit cards, through an online payment system such as Venmo or PayPal or a digital wallet built into a smartphone. And let’s not forget that there are different browsers and different versions of mobile devices that all require compatibility.

This type of connected network is referred to as the Internet of Things and semiconductors are used across these key devices and allow for this IoT technology no matter the device, from PC to mobile. Companies are innately aware of their benefit and according to Deloitte3, IoT semiconductor spending surpassed $33 billion by the end of 2020 and a projected $80 billion by 2025.

While some consumers and retailers had been slower to embrace e-commerce, the global COVID-19 pandemic changed the dynamic substantially. Online consumer spending in the U.S. was up 44 percent year-over-year in 2020, according to research firm Digital Commerce 360.

While it’s unclear whether online sales will dip as the pandemic concerns subside, it doesn’t change much as it relates to the impact of technology on the larger commerce ecosystem. Whether in-person or online, the technology that powers e-commerce behind the scenes plays an important role in every transaction, no matter whether it involves a virtual credit card number in a mobile app or handing over cash in exchange for a product.

¹“The Surprisingly Things You Don’t Know About Big Data,” Adeptia, March 2015
²“Artificial-Intelligence hardware: New opportunities for semiconductor companies,” McKinsey & Company, January 2019
³“IoT opportunity in the world of semiconductor companies,” Deloitte, July 2018

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Semiconductors are the veins of our society. They run through the heart of modern life, conducting current across nearly all electronic devices and enabling the quick, convenient connectivity that fuels today’s fast-paced world.

Semiconductors are broken into two categories, logic and memory. Based on the Von Neumann Architecture¹, instruction data and program data are stored in the memory, which is still used in most of the computers created today. Semiconductor memory’s role in this process is to store data and work with the computer’s central processing unit (CPU) to execute certain functions of a computer program.

In our new series Invisible Memory, we explore where we can find semiconductor memory, both common and uncommon, and show how important they are to the functionality of the technology. Semiconductor memory plays an important role in next-generation technologies both past and present, and functions using diverse data materials.

For this series, we’re going to challenge our readers with various mind puzzles. Get your processor ready, for this week’s crossword!

Uncovering Semiconductor Memory

The need for memory is growing rapidly each year and we are seeing it integrated into more products than ever before. According to IC Insights², growth forecasts for the memory market will continue upwards through 2023 “when total sales in this segment are expected to reach $220.5 billion.” That is even more than the video game industry which is expected “to be worth over 180 billion U.S. dollars by 2021” according to research firm Statista³.

Figure 1. Total memory IC market in global market

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They enable our smartphones, our tablets, our computers, our cameras, and our processing systems. They are central to the functionality of the technology we rely on every day. Semiconductor memory products, like HBM2E, are found and will be found in high-performance computing in supercomputers, graphic cards, and various AI-driven tasks, and allows these devices to store, transfer, and process information in the blink of an eye.

Semiconductor memory is not commonly sold in stores but can be found in many products that you purchase. Most consumer electronics such as computers, smartphones, digital cameras, and smart TVs depend on semiconductor memory.

Furthermore, they play key roles in temperature control in our refrigerators, washing machines, air conditioners, and even in lesser-known devices such as smart light bulb systems and smart home appliances. These smart devices have embedded controllers powered by semiconductor memory that you can program with pre-set modes and control from anywhere over Wi-Fi.

Additionally, semiconductor memory plays a vital role in social infrastructure and keep out cities running efficiently. Public transportation like trains and planes keep us on time and secure our finances with their roles in banks and ATMs. More now than ever we see the importance of semiconductor memory’s use in medical networks including hospitals and the care of the elderly, like SK hynix’s Silver Friend and Happy GPS.

Figure 2. Semiconductor Memory Application

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As you can see, semiconductor memory is an integral part of our workplaces, homes, hospitals, and public spaces. Over the past decade, SK hynix – as well as the entire memory industry – has made incredible progress in the field. SK hynix will start the mass-production of its DDR5 memory chip which will lead the industry as one of the world’s most powerful memory chips. Today, and into tomorrow, we continue to deepen our understanding of semiconductor memory, develop our capabilities, and bring innovative new products into the world. We’re looking forward to the potential of our products to continue to evolve the entire IT landscape.

At SK hynix, our goal is to make people’s lives easier and give our partners best-in-class technology. By delivering innovative, high-performance and reliable products to our customers and the expansion of the 4th industrial revolution technology, we will continue to see semiconductor memory prosper.

In this series, we will continue to look into the uses of semiconductor memory and the unfamiliar places that we find it. Our next article will focus on smart applications used at home including smart speakers, smart TVs, gaming consoles, and home fitness devices.

¹John von Neumann, “First Draft of a Report on the EDVAC”, (1945)
²“The McClean Report, Section 6: ‘Memory Overview’”, IC Insights, Inc. (2020)
³Christina Gough, “Video game market value worldwide from 2012 to 2021”, Statista (2019)

The post [Invisible Memory Part.1] What is Semiconductor Memory? Introducing the Invisible Memory Series first appeared on SK hynix Newsroom.