Silicon Motion's New Controller Promises Affordable AI-Level SSDs

Silicon Motion has announced the new SM2524XT, a next-generation PCIe Gen 5 x4 SSD controller developed to handle AI inference and workloads related to KV Cache. The new DRAMless solution aims to deliver high performance in next-generation AI PCs, with a special focus on random operations and reduced latency.

The controller utilizes a new architecture with four processing cores and supports NAND memories with speeds of up to 4,800 MT/s. According to data released by the company, the chip reaches a sequential read speed of up to 14 GB/s and random performance of 2.5 million IOPS, remarkably high numbers for a quad-channel platform without dedicated DRAM.

Silicon Motion has manufactured the controller using TSMC's 6 nm process technology, a choice that also enhances energy efficiency. The company claims an increase of up to 25% in performance per watt compared to the previous generation, as well as a similar improvement in random operations under sustained loads.

One of the central aspects of the project concerns, as mentioned, the management of KV Cache, an increasingly important component in locally executed AI models. This technology allows for the storage of data already processed by the language model, avoiding new calculations for each generated token. The advantage is the reduction of computational load, but it also leads to a very high quantity of random and fragmented access to storage.

In AI PCs with limited DRAM capacity, this behavior can become a bottleneck for performance and response times. Silicon Motion has therefore developed the new controller to maintain high random throughput and stable latency even during long and particularly heavy AI sessions.

To achieve these results, the controller integrates several proprietary technologies. Among these is the Separated Command Address (SCA) solution, which separates command and address traffic within the NAND interface to allow for simultaneous processing of operations. The result is reduced latency and greater efficiency in data transfer.

The controller also supports the latest-generation 3D TLC and 3D QLC NAND memories and incorporates NANDXtend LDPC ECC technology, designed to improve the management of reading errors typical of the most advanced NAND.

According to Silicon Motion, the new SM2524XT is aimed not only at consumer AI PCs but also at edge AI devices, a sector that requires consistent performance and low power consumption. The first prototypes based on the new controller are expected to appear at Computex, while the arrival of the first commercial SSDs may still take several months.