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SK Hynix Surpasses Samsung to Become South Korea's Most Valuable Company on AI Boom
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia /Technology

SK Hynix Surpasses Samsung to Become South Korea's Most Valuable Company on AI Boom

From Asharq Al-Awsat · () English

Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • SK Hynix surpassed Samsung Electronics to become South Korea's most valuable listed company, driven by its role in the AI chip market.
  • The company is now the dominant supplier of high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips essential for AI systems, benefiting from the global AI boom.
  • This marks a significant turnaround for SK Hynix, which faced near collapse due to debt two decades ago.

SK Hynix has achieved a landmark victory, overtaking Samsung Electronics to become South Korea's most valuable listed company. This dramatic reversal of fortunes for the chipmaker, which teetered on the brink of collapse two decades ago, is largely attributed to its pivotal role in the burgeoning artificial intelligence sector.

The company has emerged as the leading supplier of high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips, critical components for AI systems used by tech giants like Nvidia and Google. The global AI boom has propelled SK Hynix's shares to a staggering rally of over 340% this year, lifting its market value above both Samsung Electronics and Micron. As of early trading, SK Hynix's market capitalization reached approximately $1.35 trillion, slightly surpassing Samsung Electronics.

This shift underscores the transformative impact of AI on the semiconductor industry, elevating specialized memory chips from commodity status to essential infrastructure for advanced AI applications. While Samsung Electronics maintains a diverse portfolio including logic chips and consumer electronics, SK Hynix's strategic focus on memory, particularly HBM, has positioned it as the market leader in this specialized segment.

Analysts credit SK Hynix's success to its strategic decision to continue investing in HBM technology, even during industry downturns. This vertical stacking technology offers enhanced performance and lower power consumption, making it indispensable for AI processors. The company's journey from near bankruptcy in 2002, when it was burdened by debt, to its current status as a global AI memory chip leader represents one of South Korea's most remarkable corporate turnarounds. After reporting a significant operating loss in 2023, SK Hynix achieved a record operating profit in 2024, fueled by the AI surge.

The emergence of customized AI memory fundamentally changed the industry's economics and allowed SK Hynix to establish itself as the market leader.

— Kim SunwooSenior analyst at Meritz Securities, commenting on SK Hynix's market position.
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Originally published by Asharq Al-Awsat in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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