The essence of cloud computing lies in the "large-scale flow and precipitation of data", and storage chips are precisely the "digital cornerstone" supporting this essence. From Amazon AWS's EB-level cloud disks to Alibaba Cloud's distributed storage clusters, every computing power scheduling and every data backup relies on the performance, reliability, and cost control capabilities of storage chips. This article will deeply analyze how storage chips meet the core needs of cloud computing, predict technological evolution trends, dissect the breakthrough paths of Chinese chips, and reveal domestic players that already have the strength to replace international giants — integrating 20 core storage chip keywords throughout to provide decision-making references for cloud computing entrepreneurs.


I. "Rigid Demands" of Cloud Computing on Storage Chips: Beyond "Storage", More About "Vitality"
The distributed architecture, multi-tenant scenarios, and high-concurrency access characteristics of cloud computing impose stringent requirements on storage chips that far exceed those of consumer electronics. These "rigid demands" directly determine the chip selection logic:
1. Performance Dimension: From "Single-disk Speed" to "Cluster Collaboration"
The "elastic scaling" feature of cloud computing requires storage chips to support parallel read-write and low-latency response — a single SSD's sequential read speed needs to exceed 7000MB/s (such as PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSDs), and random read-write IOPS (Input/Output Operations Per Second) is a core indicator of cloud storage experience (enterprise-level SSDs need to reach over 1 million IOPS). Meanwhile, to avoid the bottleneck of "computing power waiting for storage", chips must support the RDMA protocol (Remote Direct Memory Access) to achieve "zero-copy" data transmission between storage and computing nodes.
2. Reliability Dimension: From "Fault-free" to "Self-healing Ability"
The "7×24 non-stop operation" requirement of cloud data centers forces storage chips to pass TBW (Total Bytes Written) certification (enterprise-level SSDs need over 6000 cycles) and embed power-loss protection capacitors and RAID redundancy algorithms. More critically, chips must support SMART (Self-Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting Technology) to预警 potential faults in advance, cooperating with the cloud platform's data multi-copy mechanism to achieve "fault self-healing".
3. Cost Dimension: From "Per-GB Price" to "Lifecycle TCO"
The large-scale nature of cloud computing is extremely cost-sensitive, driving the popularity of QLC NAND (storing 4 bits per cell) in cold data storage (30% lower cost than TLC). The SLC cache technology balances QLC's performance shortcomings. Additionally, the introduction of Storage-Class Memory (SCM) such as Optane reduces the total cost of ownership (TCO) of cloud storage by over 20% through a hierarchical storage strategy of "hot data acceleration + cold data archiving".


II. Technological Trends in the Next 3 Years: Three "Irreversible" Directions
The explosive growth of cloud computing (the global cloud storage market is expected to exceed $1 trillion by 2025) is driving storage chip technology to evolve in three clear directions:
1. Interface Protocol: PCIe 5.0 NVMe Fully Replaces SATA
Cloud computing's hunger for bandwidth (single cloud data centers have daily data interactions exceeding 100PB) makes PCIe 5.0 a necessity — its 32GB/s bandwidth is twice that of PCIe 4.0. Combined with the ZNS (Zoned Namespace) feature of the NVMe 2.0 protocol, it can increase cloud disk space utilization by 40%. Currently, Amazon AWS has deployed PCIe 5.0 SSDs in its I3 instances on a large scale, which is expected to become the standard for cloud vendors by 2026.

2. Storage Media: 3D NAND Rushes to 500-layer Stacking, New Storage Accelerates Landing
To cope with the "exponential growth" of cloud data, the stacking layers of 3D NAND will rise from the current 270 layers (Yangtze Memory Technologies) to 500 layers. Each additional 100 layers reduces the unit capacity cost by 15%. Meanwhile, MRAM (Magnetoresistive RAM) is beginning to replace some DRAM as cache in cloud servers due to its "non-volatile + nanosecond response" characteristics; ReRAM (Resistive RAM) has demonstrated "low power consumption + long lifespan" advantages in Alibaba Cloud's edge node tests, with expected large-scale application by 2027.
3. Intelligent Management: Chip-level AI Algorithms Become Standard
Next-generation cloud storage chips will embed AI scheduling engines to realize "hot data automatically moving up to SCM and cold data sinking to QLC" by learning user access habits, improving storage efficiency by 30%. For example, Samsung's "SmartSSD" can already perform simple data filtering inside the chip, reducing 90% of invalid data transmission. This technology will become a core indicator for cloud vendor procurement by 2025.


III. "Breakthrough Path" of Chinese Chips: Three Leaps from "Supporting" to "Leading"
In the field of cloud computing storage chips, Chinese enterprises have achieved a breakthrough from "technological catch-up" to "partial leadership". Their development logic can be summarized as "three steps":
1. Technological Breakthrough: Performance Leap from "Usable" to "High-quality"
Yangtze Memory Technologies (YMTC): Its 270-layer Xtacking architecture 3D NAND achieves a read speed of 14.5GB/s, on par with the latest models from Samsung and Kioxia, with a yield rate stable above 90%. It has passed Alibaba Cloud's "active-active data center" test, and its TBW indicator meets enterprise-level requirements (over 6000 cycles);
ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT): Independently developed LPDDR5 memory with a bandwidth of 8400Mbps and a latency of only 8ns, successfully entering Tencent Cloud's cloud server supply chain, replacing approximately 15% of Micron's share;
YeeSTOR (partner of YMTC): The PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD based on YMTC particles achieves 1.2 million IOPS, with performance comparable to Western Digital's Ultrastar in Alibaba Cloud's "hybrid cloud storage" project but at an 18% lower cost.

2. Ecosystem Construction: From "Single Product Breakthrough" to "Industrial Chain Collaboration"
A complete domestic chain from "equipment-materials-design-manufacturing-application" has formed: NAURA's etching machines can meet the production of 300-layer+ 3D NAND; Shanghai Sinyang's photoresist has passed YMTC's verification; the "domestic combination" of HiSilicon's SSD controller chips (supporting NVMe 2.0) and YMTC particles achieved "99.999% availability" in Kingsoft Cloud's tests, reaching international Tier 1 levels. This collaborative capability shortens the delivery cycle of domestic chips by 20% compared to international brands, forming a unique advantage in the current "capacity rush" among cloud vendors.
3. Market Penetration: From "Edge Scenarios" to "Core Clusters"
The substitution path of domestic chips shows a "from shallow to deep" feature: first replacing Kioxia's QLC NAND in Alibaba Cloud's archive storage (cold data) with a 30% share; then entering Tencent Cloud's elastic cloud disks (hot data), with YMTC's TLC particles accounting for 25%; in 2024, Baidu Smart Cloud's AI training clusters began adopting CXMT's LPDDR5 memory, replacing approximately 10% of SK Hynix's share. It is expected that the penetration rate of domestic storage chips in the domestic cloud computing market will exceed 40% by 2026.


IV. "Domestic Forces" Capable of Replacing International Brands: Case Studies of Three Types of Enterprises
In the field of cloud computing storage chips, the following Chinese brands already have the strength to compete with international giants (Samsung, Micron, Western Digital). Their substitution scenarios and performance are clear:

1. Yangtze Memory Technologies (YMTC): "Pioneer" in NAND Flash
Replaced Targets: Kioxia, Western Digital's enterprise-level TLC/QLC NAND;
Adapted Scenarios: Alibaba Cloud OSS object storage (cold data), Huawei Cloud SFS Turbo file storage (hot data);
Core Advantages: The 270-layer Xtacking architecture offers 30% higher storage density than Kioxia's 212-layer products, 12% lower per-GB cost, and supports ZNS protocol customization, perfectly adapting to the "zoned management" needs of cloud storage. Currently, YMTC accounts for 18% of NAND procurement by domestic cloud vendors and is expected to surpass Kioxia as the second-largest supplier by 2025.

2. ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT): "Chaser" in DRAM and HBM
Replaced Targets: Micron's DDR4/DDR5 memory;
Adapted Scenarios: Tencent Cloud CVM cloud servers, ByteDance Volcano Engine elastic computing nodes;
Core Advantages: DDR5 memory has 5% higher energy efficiency ratio (bandwidth per watt) than Micron, passed "100,000-hour fault-free" stability tests, and has a delivery cycle of only 4 weeks (Micron requires 8 weeks). Its upcoming HBM3 product (819GB/s bandwidth) has entered Huawei Cloud's AI training cluster test list, expected to replace 5% of Samsung's HBM share by 2026.

3. Longsys: "Integrator" in Storage Modules
Replaced Targets: Western Digital's enterprise-level SSD modules;
Adapted Scenarios: Amazon AWS China's EBS cloud disks, Kingsoft Cloud's distributed storage systems;
Core Advantages: The PCIe 4.0 SSD based on YMTC particles + HiSilicon controllers achieves 1.5 million random read-write IOPS (Western Digital: 1.4 million) and supports end-to-end data encryption (compliant with national cybersecurity level 2.0 standards), better fitting the compliance needs of domestic cloud vendors. In domestic cloud module procurement, Longsys's share has risen from 8% in 2022 to 22% in 2024.

V. Decision Recommendations for Cloud Computing Entrepreneurs: How to Seize the "Domestic Substitution" Opportunity?
For cloud computing service providers, choosing domestic storage chips is not only a "supply chain security" need but also a strategic choice for "cost optimization + performance improvement":
Priority Pilot Scenarios: Start with cold data storage (such as archiving services) to reduce TCO using the cost advantages of YMTC's QLC NAND; adopt CXMT's LPDDR5 in edge computing nodes to balance power consumption and performance;

Focus on Technological Collaboration: Jointly customize chip functions with domestic manufacturers (such as developing independent encrypted partitions for multi-tenant scenarios) to form differentiated competitiveness of "cloud platform + chips";
Layout Long-term Cooperation: Participate in early testing of domestic chips (such as YMTC's 300-layer NAND and CXMT's HBM) to lock in future capacity and avoid "supply fluctuations" risks of international brands.

From AWS using YMTC particles to build Chinese-region cloud disks to Alibaba Cloud incorporating domestic SSDs into core clusters, the "domestic substitution" of storage chips is no longer a choice but a must for cloud computing enterprises to reduce costs, improve efficiency, and build an independent and controllable ecosystem. In this transformation, those who take the lead in embracing domestic forces will gain an edge in future cloud storage competition.