Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are set to announce a combined investment package worth $646 billion, a staggering commitment to semiconductor production that underscores just how seriously South Korea is taking the AI chip race.
The investment, expected to be formally unveiled on Monday, centers on building out a second major chip cluster in South Korea.
The AI chip arms race accelerates
Demand for semiconductors, particularly the high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips that power AI workloads, has been described by South Korean officials as “exponential and explosive.”
That demand has been so intense that it’s reshaping corporate hierarchies. SK Hynix recently surpassed its larger rival as South Korea’s most valuable listed company with a market capitalization of approximately $1.35 trillion. SK Hynix dominates the HBM market that Nvidia and other AI chip designers desperately need.
