Is this the end of Samsung's dominance of the semiconductor industry for more than 20 years and the beginning of a completely new AI empire?
On June 24, 2026, the Korean stock market witnessed a historic milestone when SK hynix surpassed Samsung Electronics to become the listed enterprise with the country's largest market capitalization. This is the first time in more than two decades that Samsung has lost the iconic position it has almost absolutely held since the consumer electronics and DRAM memory boom.
What is worth noting is that this change does not come from smartphones, TVs or home appliances, but from a product that few common users know about but is being sought after by the whole AI world, which is HBM.
What is HBM?
HBM is high-bandwidth memory designed for extreme performance AI processors.
NVIDIA's AI GPU lines such as Blackwell, Rubin or modern AI supercomputers all need HBM to process huge amounts of data in a short time.
Compare the role of memory in AI
Purpose Technology
Traditional DRAM Computers, phones
NAND Flash SSD, data storage
HBM GPU AI, data center AI
While Samsung remains a major force in DRAM and NAND, SK hynix is years ahead in high-end HBM technology.
HBM race today
HBM Position Enterprise
SK hynix Leading supplier for NVIDIA
Samsung Electronicss Accelerating but not yet catching up
Micron Technology Big competitor from America
Analysts believe that SK hynix's success is tied to its strategic relationship with NVIDIA. As NVIDIA sells more AI GPUs, demand for HBM from SK hynix increases.
AI effects have changed everything
In the past, technology business value was often determined by smartphones or consumer electronics.
Now the game is different.
Companies that own AI technology are becoming the center of the global digital economy.
New growth driver
Technology-led stage
2000 - 2010 PC
2010 - 2020 Smartphones
2020 - 2024 Cloud Computing
2024 - 2030 AI and HBM
Samsung is facing great pressure as the gap in the HBM field is increasingly widening. Although it is still the world's leading technology corporation with huge revenue from Galaxy phones, TVs and memory chips, the market currently evaluates the future based on its ability to serve AI rather than success in traditional industries.
The value of HBM is currently considered the "new gold" of the technology industry.
A high-end AI system can use HBM worth hundreds of millions to billions of VND on each server cluster. As corporations such as NVIDIA, Microsoft, Amazon, Google and Meta continue to invest tens of billions of dollars in AI data centers, HBM demand is forecast to increase sharply for many years to come.
Summary of the war
SK hynix criteria Samsung Electronics
HBM AI Leading Pursuing
Major AI Partner NVIDIA Expanding
Market valueHighest street in Korea, ranked next
Growth drivers of AI and Data Center Multi-industry
The history of world technology has repeatedly proven that no throne lasts forever. Nokia once dominated phones, Intel once dominated computer CPUs, and now Samsung is also facing the biggest challenge in semiconductor history.
In the AI era, HBM owners can own the future of the technology industry. And at the present time, the name that is making both Samsung and Micron wary is SK hynix.
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