The fortunes of Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, two giants of the K-semiconductor industry, are diverging. As Samsung Electronics’ semiconductor chief marks his first anniversary, diligently striving for a turnaround, the gaze of the Artificial Intelligence (AI) world's brightest star has fallen solely on SK Hynix.
The catalyst for this shift in fate originated from news across the sea in Taiwan. Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, attending Computex 2025, Asia’s largest IT exhibition in Taipei, made a surprise visit to SK Hynix’s booth on the opening day. After inspecting a sample of SK Hynix's 6th generation High Bandwidth Memory (HBM), HBM4, he praised it as "truly beautiful. You're doing well." He also left heartfelt messages on the exhibited products, including “JHH LOVES SK Hynix!” and “One Team!”
Huang further cemented his support by telling SK Hynix officials, “Please support HBM4 well.” SK Hynix became the industry’s first to supply Nvidia with HBM4 samples in March and is set to begin mass production in the latter half of this year. Consequently, Huang’s remarks are widely interpreted as a strong indication that SK Hynix’s final product delivery to Nvidia will proceed smoothly. SK Hynix currently supplies Nvidia with its 5th generation HBM, HBM3E.
The “Huang CEO effect” immediately impacted stock prices. On the preceding day, SK Hynix shares closed at 202,000 won, up 1.3% from the previous trading day, reclaiming the 200,000 won mark. On May 21st, they closed at 205,000 won. SK Hynix continues its strong performance, having reported 17.6391 trillion won in Q1 revenue, a 41.9% increase year-over-year.
Samsung's Uphill Battle in the AI Ecosystem
In stark contrast to the celebratory mood at SK Hynix, Samsung Electronics finds itself observing a more subdued anniversary, still striving to integrate into Nvidia's AI ecosystem. Jun Young-hyun, head of Samsung Electronics' Device Solutions (DS) division, marked his first year in the role on May 21st.
Tasked with rescuing Samsung's semiconductor business during an unprecedented crisis, Jun has spent the past year diligently diagnosing problems and formulating countermeasures. His reform efforts span all aspects, from strengthening technological competitiveness, particularly in semiconductor design capabilities, to fostering a more open organizational culture through enhanced discussion. In October of last year, he even issued a rare apology for the lackluster Q3 performance.
At a shareholder meeting in March, Jun stated, “I believe that the HBM3E 12-layer product will play a leading role in the market as early as Q2, or by the second half at the latest,” pinpointing the latter half of the year as a turning point. He also vowed, “We will not repeat the same mistakes in the next-generation HBM.”
However, reality remains challenging for Samsung. In the first quarter of this year, memory sales plummeted by 17% quarter-on-quarter to 19.1 trillion won. Samsung has already ceded its No. 1 position in DRAM market share to SK Hynix. Meanwhile, latecomer Chinese manufacturers are rapidly gaining ground. Industry consensus suggests that organizational culture cannot be transformed overnight. Moreover, considering the semiconductor cycle, which involves years of investment, research and development, and mass production, a single year is deemed insufficient to witness significant results. An industry insider remarked, "To catch up with the constantly evolving AI ecosystem, Samsung's clock needs to run faster than it is now."
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