Until now, SK hynix has focused on supplying the products customers want in a timely manner. However, as the importance of memory in the artificial intelligence (AI) era grows, that alone will not be enough, so we are preparing new solutions such as custom high bandwidth memory (HBM), AI DRAM, and NAND flash.
Kwak Noh-jung, president of SK hynix, said at SK AI Summit 2025, held at COEX in Gangnam District, Seoul, on the 3rd, I don't think it will be enough to remain only a provider. The new goal SK hynix has set is to be a full stack AI memory creator that thinks through and solves customers' challenges together. On the day, Kwak delivered a keynote speech on the theme, New vision and technology drawn by SK hynix in the AI era.
Kwak explained that as the spread of AI accelerates, the amount of data movement is surging, increasing demand for memory semiconductors, but a bottleneck is occurring because memory performance is failing to keep up with the rate of advancement of processors that handle AI computation. He said, As memory's importance in AI performance grows, memory is establishing itself not as a simple component but as a core value product of the AI industry, adding, Performance required of memory has also risen significantly, making it difficult to achieve in the same ways as before.
SK hynix said it plans to unveil a full stack AI memory lineup that builds a portfolio by developing products optimized for each sector, including HBM, DRAM, and NAND, to meet diversifying market demand in the AI era. Kwak said, As the role of memory diversifies and expands, it will evolve to structurally resolve AI bottlenecks, adding, Custom HBM, AI DRAM, and NAND are the new solutions.
Custom HBM is a product in which the logic die, the brain of HBM, is tailored to reflect customer requirements. It shifts some functions of the graphics processing unit (GPU) and application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), which handle AI computation, to maximize the performance of AI semiconductors and improve efficiency. SK hynix said it is also preparing solutions to diversify product families by subdividing the domains of general-purpose DRAM and NAND flash. Kwak said, For DRAM, we are preparing SOCAM, a memory module specialized for AI servers, and LPDDR5, which maximizes power efficiency. With SanDisk, we are collaborating on the development of an HBM product that adds NAND functions to HBM.
Kwak added, I tried to capture the meaning of the number '1' in the fact that SK hynix has risen to No. 1 in the global memory sector over the past year and became the No. 1 company people want to work for, and said, Going forward, we will solve customers' problems together and actively collaborate with the ecosystem to deliver value beyond customers' expectations. As a co-designer, partner, and contributor to the ecosystem, we will become a creator that builds full stack AI memory. According to market research firm Counterpoint Research, SK hynix recorded $13.7 billion in revenue in the DRAM business in the third quarter of this year, taking the No. 1 spot among memory semiconductor corporations with a 35% market share.