Ashley Greninger

Ashley Greninger asked about the trending mix of UltraSMR drives within Western Digital's portfolio, considering its order book and long-term agreements, and how this mix shift is expected to influence future gross margins.

Answer

CEO Irving Tan reported that UltraSMR mix surpassed 50% last quarter and is expected to increase further, with top three customers fully adopting and more moving towards it. He noted UltraSMR provides a 20% capacity uplift over CMR and 10% over industry-standard SMR, and being a software-based solution, it is highly margin-creative. CFO Kris Sennesael added that new JBOD platforms are expanding UltraSMR's customer reach.

Ashley Greninger inquired about the trending mix of UltraSMR drives and its anticipated role as a driver of gross margins moving forward, considering the company's order book and LTAs.

Answer

Irving Tan, CEO, reported that the UltraSMR mix exceeded 50% last quarter and is expected to increase further, with top three customers fully adopting and more moving towards it. He highlighted UltraSMR's 20% capacity uplift over CMR and 10% over standard SMR, and its margin-creative nature as a software-based solution. Kris Sennesael, CFO, added that new JBOD platforms are expanding UltraSMR's customer reach.