DorsaVi (ASX:DVL) Just Cleared the ReRAM Hurdle Investors Were Waiting For

DorsaVi (ASX:DVL)  has cleared one of the biggest technical hurdles facing its 22nm ReRAM program to date.

The company has developed three different recipes for its ReRAM memory cells, known in the semiconductor industry as memory stacks. All three have now passed the tests required for integration inside a standard commercial manufacturing process.

For investors, this is an important milestone. It gives a clear example of how small-cap semiconductor companies move from chip design into process integration and manufacturing readiness. It also gives DorsaVi’s engineering team more optionality. With three validated stacks, the company can now select the strongest recipe and continue improving the material stack as the program advances.

In our Sum-of-the-Parts valuation from our initiation report, one of the key share price catalysts we highlighted was this exact milestone, integrating DorsaVi’s ReRAM into standard manufacturing processes.

Without that step, DorsaVi would not have a clear pathway to bring a product to market. Now that milestone has been achieved, the program has been materially de-risked.

The ReRAM stack is holding up 

Since our previous coverage, the third-party collaborations with Nanyang Technological University and ITRI appear to be progressing well. Nanyang is supporting the design work for DorsaVi’s ReRAM chip, while ITRI is helping integrate that design into CMOS production flows.

CMOS is the standard technology platform used by manufacturers to produce chips. So this is not just a lab-based development step. DorsaVi is working to show its ReRAM can be integrated into the same manufacturing processes already used across the semiconductor industry.

While these collaborations are necessary, investors should still be realistic about the risk.

Relying on third-party engineering and development means DorsaVi’s progress is partly tied to external execution. If those partners face delays, technical setbacks or resourcing constraints, the program could move slower than expected.But the quality of the partners matters. Nanyang Technological University and ITRI are Tier-1 research institutions, which gives us greater confidence in the ongoing development pathway.

So while this does not remove the execution risk, it does strengthen the credibility of the program.

We continue to value DorsaVi at A$0.22 per share, comprising A$0.13 per share for the Sensor business and A$0.09 per share for the ReRAM business.

DorsaVi just passed the silicon smell test

What we are starting to notice with DorsaVi is that the investment case now depends on how quickly the company can tick off the technical milestones behind its ReRAM chip. On that front, the pace is clearly accelerating.

In March, the company began testing its ReRAM on a 180nm node. By today’s standards, 180nm is old technology, with foundries like TSMC already pushing below 2nm. But for early-stage chip development, that is exactly the point. It is predictable, well understood and much cheaper to use than advanced nodes, which makes it a practical testing ground for new chip architectures.

Later in March, DorsaVi released its V6.5 firmware, described as “neuromorphic-ready”. This prepared the company’s biosensor business with a software layer that can support eventual ReRAM integration. In other words, DorsaVi is not just working on the chip. It is also building the back-end software that could support broader applications as the story develops.

Now, only a few months after initial testing at 180nm began, DorsaVi has shown how its ReRAM can be integrated into CMOS production flows. That is a meaningful step forward and shows the company is moving quickly through the technical development pathway.

DVL’s next share price catalysts 

For investors watching the next DorsaVi share price catalysts, the biggest near-term milestone on DorsaVi’s calendar is the tape-out phase.

This is the point where the recipe is established and DorsaVi sends the chip design to a foundry to begin production. It is an important transition from design and integration work into actual silicon manufacturing.

After that, the next step is qualification. This is where DorsaVi will need to test the chip against the performance benchmarks it has already set, which are shown in the graph below.

That is the next key proof point for investors. We would want to see progress broadly in line with those benchmarks, particularly around reliability, endurance, retention and power efficiency.

Pitt Street Research Directors owns shares in the company discussed. This article reflects personal views and is not financial advice.