With memory demand for automotive set to grow robustly, Micron Technology is gearing up for the market boom by accelerating its deployments of related products and technologies, according to company executive VP and chief business officer Sumit Sadana.

The automotive memory sector will outperform other application segments in terms of revenue growth, particularly in the era of 5G when the market for connected vehicles will boom, Sadana noted.

The average memory content per vehicle is also set to increase dramatically, thanks to growing demand for autonomous driving, Sadana indicated. According to Semico Research, a fully autonomous vehicle (L5) is expected to require 74GB DRAM and 1TB NAND memory.

Artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT) will allow the memory industry to usher into the next wave of growth, Sadana said. Handsets and PCs will no longer be among the major target markets of memory chipmakers.

In particular, opportunities created by AI are huge, Sadana continued. Memory plays a crucial part in the development of AI enabling smart edge devices including data centers, smartphones and self-driving cars, Sadana said.

Micron announced recently it is working with Qualcomm to enable an advanced automotive connectivity solution that leverages 5G networks for autonomous driving and direct cellular vehicle-to-everything (C-V2X) communication. The new Qualcomm Snapdragon Automotive 5G Platform will feature a custom Micron 149 ball count multichip package, allowing for speeds of up to 20 times faster than current LTE-Advanced modems. Faster modem speeds widen the possibilities for vehicles to connect to other vehicles, roadside infrastructure and beyond.

Micron already has a broad portfolio of volatile and nonvolatile memory products optimized for automotive applications and supported by a formal product longevity program. Micron's wafer fabrication facility located in Manassas, Virginia, is dedicated to supporting the company's long-lifecycle memory and storage technologies. Micron also plans to invest US$3 billion by 2030 to increase memory production at its Manassas plant.