The announcement follows SK Hynix's first loss in a decade in fiscal 2022, but the company has since recovered due to an AI boom. SK Hynix and Micron Technologies Inc. are among the few companies globally that can design and build the high-bandwidth dynamic random-access memory chips needed for advanced AI workloads. SK Group plans to use the funds to advance the development of these chips, invest in new data centers, and AI services like personal AI assistants. Subsidiaries including SK Telecom and SK Broadband will jointly invest $2.46 billion over the next five years in the AI data center business.
Key takeaways:
- SK Group, the parent of South Korean memory chipmaker SK Hynix Inc., plans to invest $74.6 billion into its chip business over the next three years, with an additional $58 billion set aside for artificial intelligence-related technologies and shareholder returns.
- The $58 billion investment will be used to build out SK Hynix’s AI semiconductor manufacturing capabilities and improve its competitiveness by focusing on its AI value chain.
- SK Hynix is one of the few companies in the world that can design and build the high-bandwidth dynamic random-access memory chips needed to power advanced AI workloads.
- South Korea’s government recently announced a $19 billion support package to build out its local semiconductor industry, enticing both SK Hynix and its rival memory chipmaker Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. to invest further in the sector.