Kwak Noh-jung, president and CEO of SK hynix, said in a New Year's address on the 2nd that "2025 was a meaningful year in which we achieved clear qualitative and quantitative growth by delivering the best performance in our history."
Kwak said this was the result of employees and management concentrating their capabilities with a one-team mindset, and he expressed gratitude to all employees, shareholders, and stakeholders.
Kwak said, "Now is the time to use last year's results as a springboard for new challenges," adding, "AI demand, which exceeded expectations, is no longer an upside surprise but a constant, and the intensity of competition is also increasing." He continued, "As we have risen to a market-leading position in key areas, the roles and responsibilities required of us have grown beyond comparison with the past."
He presented "top-tier corporations" as the company's mid- to long-term orientation. Kwak said, "We must go beyond simply being No. 1 to become a true partner that puts customer satisfaction first and move forward as a corporation that contributes to society's sustainable development." To that end, he said it is necessary to maintain technology leadership and a profitability-centered management stance based on SKMS, while also making sufficient investments and efforts to secure future competitiveness.
On organizational culture, he emphasized the Supex spirit, humility, and the importance of collaboration. Kwak said, "We should maximize the motivation that comes from leading the industry, but it must be accompanied by bold challenges, constant checks, and a culture of collaboration," adding, "It is important to complete the one-team spirit through rigorous technological and strategic discussions."
As an execution strategy to respond to changes in the AI environment, he cited "speed" as the key word. He said, "Speed is paramount to secure differentiated market competitiveness," adding, "We must develop leading-edge technologies and next-generation products one step ahead, and push forward with the adoption of AI technologies at speed to continuously strengthen competitiveness across O/I."
He added, "To leap forward as a true "Full Stack AI Memory Creator," we must break out of existing frameworks and present and implement, in creative ways, the values customers need most."
Kwak said, "Based on these efforts, let's establish ourselves as the most trusted partner by presenting customers with differentiated products and a clear future vision, and let's make 2026 a year when we take another step forward as top-tier corporations."