YMTC’s next Wuhan fabs could shake up the memory race, and that matters for gamers too

China’s YMTC is reportedly preparing for a major manufacturing push in Wuhan, with plans for two more fabs on top of its already in-progress Phase 3 plant. According to Tom’s Hardware, citing Reuters, that expansion would more than double the company’s current wafer output if it goes through.

That might sound like deep industry news, but it has real relevance for gamers, PC builders, phone brands, and the broader electronics market across Malaysia and Southeast Asia.

What YMTC is planning

YMTC currently runs two fabs in Wuhan with a combined capacity of 200,000 wafers per month. The upcoming Phase 3 plant is expected to start operating late this year, with equipment installation already underway, and is projected to reach 50,000 wafers per month by 2027.

Beyond that, Reuters reported that YMTC wants to build two additional fabs. Each of the three newer plants, including Phase 3, is designed for 100,000 wafers per month at full capacity.

If those plans are fully realised, YMTC would be looking at a much bigger production footprint than it has today.

Why this fab matters more than the others

Phase 3 is not just another factory. It is the first YMTC fab where domestic Chinese equipment makes up more than half of the tooling used.

That is a big threshold.

Tom’s Hardware says YMTC’s overall domestic tool adoption rate is already around 45%, which is reportedly the highest among Chinese fabs. But Phase 3 is the first time the company has crossed the 50% mark. Local suppliers involved include AMEC, and that matters because YMTC has had to lean harder on Chinese vendors after being placed on the US Entity List in 2022.

Its earlier Wuhan fabs were built mostly with Western equipment before those restrictions hit, including before access to companies like ASML was cut off.

So Phase 3 is effectively a live test of whether Chinese-made tools can support high-volume 3D NAND production with competitive yields. That is also why the two extra fabs are reportedly dependent on how well this phase performs.

NAND today, DRAM tomorrow

There is another twist here. YMTC is best known for NAND flash, the memory used in SSDs, phones, handhelds, and plenty of other devices gamers use daily. But Reuters also reported that the company has sent low-power DRAM samples to customers and expects feedback by the end of this year.

More notably, YMTC is said to be allocating around 50% of Phase 3 capacity to DRAM instead of NAND. It is also reportedly working on through-silicon via packaging for HBM, the stacked DRAM used in AI accelerators.

In short, this is not just a flash memory story anymore. YMTC appears to be pushing into multiple layers of the memory stack.

Where YMTC stands globally

In 2025, YMTC held 11.8% of the global NAND market, tied with SanDisk, according to the UBS figures cited in the report. That puts it behind Samsung at 30.4%, SK hynix at 16%, Kioxia at 15.9%, and Micron at 13.3%.

Yole Group expects YMTC to reach 15% by 2028, which is later than the company’s earlier 2026 ambition. On the technology side, its Xtacking 4.0 design is at roughly 270 layers, still behind SK hynix’s 321-layer 4D NAND and Samsung’s 286-layer ninth-gen V-NAND.

Why Malaysia and SEA readers should care

For readers in Malaysia and the wider region, this matters because Southeast Asia sits right in the middle of the global electronics supply chain. More competition in NAND and DRAM can eventually affect pricing, availability, and sourcing strategies for everything from gaming laptops and GPUs to smartphones and data centre gear.

It also matters because companies like Micron are expanding in Singapore, while China is pushing harder on self-sufficiency. That means Asia’s memory manufacturing map is getting more crowded, more strategic, and more important to watch.

For gamers, the impact will not show up overnight at your local PC shop. But memory supply shifts do influence SSD pricing, device costs, and the hardware ecosystem that powers gaming, anime streaming, mobile esports, and AI-heavy apps across the region.

If YMTC proves it can scale Phase 3 successfully with mostly homegrown tools, this story could become a much bigger one.

Source: Tom's Hardware