Artificial Intelligence · Profile from AI Research Companion
SK Hynix
The South Korean memory maker that was a creditor-owned near-bankrupt in 2001, the perennial number two to Samsung for two decades, and then, by betting early on stacked high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and becoming the lead supplier to Nvidia, the most profitable memory company in history. SK Hynix posted a 2023 operating loss of ~7.73tn won, its largest ever (reported), then 2025 operating profit of ~47.2tn won on revenue of ~97.1tn won (company, January 2026), and in the third quarter of 2026 alone ~83.3tn won of operating profit on ~104.6tn won of revenue, an ~80% margin (preliminary, October 28, 2026). It overtook Samsung in DRAM revenue in the first quarter of 2025 (Counterpoint, TrendForce), passed Samsung's common stock in market value on June 22, 2026 (~2,080tn won, ~$1.35tn, reported), and raised ~$26.5bn in a Nasdaq ADR listing in July 2026, the largest US offering by a foreign company on record (reported). Its weakness is the one every memory maker shares: profits that swing from record losses to record gains within two years.
At a glance
- Founded
- 1983 as Hyundai Electronics Industries (semiconductor arm of the Hyundai Group); merged with LG Semicon 1999; renamed Hynix Semiconductor 2001; SK Hynix since 2012
- Founders / owners
- Founded by Hyundai's Chung Ju-yung group; creditor-controlled 2001–2012; acquired by SK Telecom (February 2012); SK Telecom's stake moved to the SK Square holding company in the November 2021 split (reported; ~20% stake, verify exact)
- Headquarters
- Icheon, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea; major fabs in Icheon and Cheongju; Yongin cluster under construction; DRAM fab in Wuxi and NAND fab in Dalian, China; HBM packaging plant planned for West Lafayette, Indiana
- Ownership / structure
- Listed on the Korea Exchange (000660) since 1996 (as Hyundai Electronics, verify); Nasdaq ADRs (SKHY) since July 2026. SK Square is the largest shareholder; Korea's National Pension Service a major holder (reported). Subsidiaries include Solidigm (NAND/SSD, ex-Intel) and the US "AI Co." vehicle (2026)
- Leadership (2026)
- Chey Tae-won (SK Group chairman; SK Hynix chairman, verify title); Kwak Noh-jung (CEO since 2022, sole CEO from 2023, verify); Kim Woo-hyun (CFO, verify)
- Products
- DRAM (server, PC, mobile; DDR5, LPDDR5X), HBM (HBM3, HBM3E, HBM4, HBM4E samples), NAND flash and enterprise SSDs (incl. Solidigm), CXL and processing-in-memory modules (early)
- Scale
- Revenue ~66.2tn won (2024), ~97.1tn won (2025), ~234tn won in the first three quarters of 2026 (company; Q3 preliminary). ~58% of HBM revenue in Q1 2026 and ~50% in Q2 2026 (Counterpoint, reported, re-checked Nov 2026; Samsung ~33%, Micron ~18% in Q2); ~36% of DRAM revenue in Q1 2025 (Counterpoint)
- Profit
- Operating loss ~7.73tn won (2023); operating profit ~23.5tn won (2024), ~47.2tn won (2025), ~37.6tn (Q1 2026), ~60.5tn (Q2 2026), ~83.3tn won (Q3 2026, preliminary) (company)
- Capital / regulatory status
- Korean listed company; US CHIPS Act award of up to $458m in grants plus up to $500m in loans for Indiana (finalized December 2024); China fabs moved from "validated end user" status to annual US export licences from the end of 2025 (reported)
- Signature moves (incl. failures)
- Creditor rescue and the Hynix name (2001); SK Telecom acquisition (2012); first HBM with AMD (2013); the Bain–Toshiba Memory (Kioxia) investment (2018); Intel NAND / Solidigm (2020–25); the 2022–23 downturn and record losses; HBM3 and the Nvidia supply lock (2022–25); the Indiana packaging plant and CHIPS award (2024); HBM4, record profits and China licences (2025); the Nasdaq ADR listing (2026)
10 strategic moves analysed
Each one gets a full strategy file in the companion: context, the decision, the financing, what happened, and the lesson.
2001
Creditor Rescue and the Hynix Name
Restructuring (creditor rescue, debt-for-equity swap, separation from the Hyundai Group)
2012
SK Telecom Acquisition
Acquisition (Hynix as target; change of control from creditors to a chaebol)
2013
First HBM with AMD
Launch / partnership (co-development of a new memory standard)
2018
Bain Consortium and Toshiba Memory
Investment (minority participation in a private-equity-led acquisition)
2020
Intel NAND Solidigm Acquisition
Acquisition (two-stage carve-out of Intel's NAND and SSD business)
2022
HBM3 and the Nvidia Supply Lock
Partnership / launch (lead HBM supply to Nvidia across three generations)
2022
Memory Downturn and Record Losses
Restructuring (capex cuts, production cuts and debt-funded survival through a downturn)
2024
Indiana HBM Packaging Plant and CHIPS Award
Regulatory action / investment (first US manufacturing site, backed by a CHIPS Act award)
2025
HBM4 Record Profits and China Licences
Launch (HBM4) / regulatory action (loss of US export waivers for China fabs)
2026
Nasdaq ADR Listing
IPO (US listing of American depositary receipts, all primary shares)