Seagate Technology and Toshiba are reportedly competing to acquire TDK Corp.’s magnetic-recording head business, a key HDD supplier. The deal could be worth several billion dollars, amid rising demand for mass data storage from AI data centers. TDK is the only independent manufacturer of HDD magnetic-recording heads, making the business strategically important to either bidder.
Toshiba, which relies entirely on TDK for magnetic heads, began talks in the spring. Seagate makes some heads in-house but also depends on TDK; it later submitted a higher bid.
An acquisition by either company would reshape supply-chain dynamics in the HDD market, which is dominated by Seagate, Western Digital, and Toshiba. The deal is expected to draw antitrust scrutiny because of the strategic importance of data center storage.