AI demand fuels SK Hynix, Samsung Q3 results

Seoul — South Korea’s memory chipmakers reported strong third-quarter results on Wednesday as rising investment in artificial intelligence infrastructure boosted demand for high-performance and conventional memory products, prompting both firms to announce expanded production plans and stepped-up investment.

SK Hynix said it posted a record operating profit of about 11.4 trillion won for the July–September period, driven by rising prices for DRAM and NAND and growing shipments of high-bandwidth memory used in AI servers. The company said it has already secured full customer demand for its entire DRAM and NAND production for next year and plans to begin shipping next-generation HBM4 chips in the fourth quarter, with a full-scale sales expansion of HBM4 scheduled for next year. "Demand across the memory segment has soared due to customers expanding investments in AI infrastructure," the company said. SK Hynix also announced partnerships this month with AI firms including OpenAI and chipmaker Broadcom. Counterpoint Research data showed SK Hynix held about 35 percent of global DRAM sales in the third quarter and about 58 percent of the HBM market.