Samsung has officially announced the development of its next-generation UFS 5.0 storage solution, a major upgrade designed to meet the growing demands of on-device artificial intelligence (AI) in future mobile devices.
As more generative AI features move away from cloud servers and run directly on smartphones and other devices, storage performance has become increasingly important. Processing large AI models locally requires significantly faster data transfers, and Samsung’s latest storage standard aims to address that challenge.
According to the company, UFS 5.0 complies with the latest JEDEC embedded memory interface standards and delivers substantial performance gains over the previous generation.
The new storage solution offers sequential read speeds of up to 10.8GB/s and sequential write speeds of up to 9.5GB/s. Samsung says these figures represent a two-fold increase compared to the previous UFS 4.1 standard, helping reduce latency when handling large language models (LLMs) and other AI workloads directly on a device.
Performance isn’t the only area receiving an upgrade. Samsung also reports a 40% improvement in power efficiency over UFS 4.1. The company attributes this gain to the use of clock gating and multi-voltage technologies, which help reduce energy consumption during data transfers and improve overall battery life.
The physical design has also been optimized. UFS 5.0 measures just 7.5mm × 13mm × 0.9mm, resulting in a footprint that is 16.7% smaller than UFS 4.1. Despite the reduced size, the new storage solution still supports capacities of up to 1TB. Samsung says the smaller package will give manufacturers greater flexibility when designing future devices and allocating internal space.
Samsung UFS 5.0 Specifications
| Feature | UFS 5.0 |
|---|---|
| Sequential Read Speed | Up to 10.8GB/s |
| Sequential Write Speed | Up to 9.5GB/s |
| Power Efficiency | 40% better than UFS 4.1 |
| Dimensions | 7.5mm × 13mm × 0.9mm |
| Maximum Capacity | Up to 1TB |
| Footprint | 16.7% smaller than UFS 4.1 |
Samsung plans to begin mass production of UFS 5.0 chips in the fourth quarter of this year. The company will offer the storage solution in multiple capacities and expects it to be used across flagship smartphones, extended reality (XR) headsets, and wearable devices.
Commenting on the announcement, Jangseok Choi, Head of Memory Product Planning at Samsung Electronics, said that storage is becoming a key factor in defining AI experiences in the era of on-device AI. He added that Samsung’s successful development of the industry’s first UFS 5.0 solution sets a new standard for mobile storage and will help drive innovation across next-generation mobile platforms.
With faster speeds, improved efficiency, and a smaller footprint, Samsung’s UFS 5.0 appears poised to become a key component in the next wave of AI-powered mobile devices.