"Memory Has Become a Core Weapon That Determines National Security... Samsung and SK Will Emerge as 'AI Gatekeepers'"

[Financial News] "Samsung Electronics and SK hynix will rise to play an irreplaceable role as 'strategic gatekeepers' in the age of the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution."
Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are expected to move beyond the role of simple chip suppliers in the global AI semiconductor market and become the de facto exclusive suppliers in the High Bandwidth Memory (HBM) segment. In practice, only these two companies are seen as capable of meeting the demanding requirements of the big tech firms.
Chris Miller, author of the global bestseller "Chip War: The Fight for the World's Most Critical Technology" and a professor at Tufts University, said that Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are being elevated to "indispensable partners" for big tech companies, adding that the traditional power imbalance between big tech and semiconductor suppliers "will also be reversed."
In a written interview with Financial News on the 25th, Miller explained, "Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are becoming virtually irreplaceable suppliers of memory for AI accelerators because they possess both HBM production capacity and advanced packaging technologies." He noted that, on the back of their HBM and packaging capabilities for AI accelerators such as Graphics Processing Units (GPU), the two firms are securing a uniquely dominant position within the AI semiconductor ecosystem.
He also predicted that the status of semiconductors as a national strategic asset will be further strengthened. "Semiconductors are no longer just tradable goods; they have become strategic assets that shape the balance of power between nations," Miller said. "Semiconductor technologies that determine AI computing power are now evolving beyond ordinary electronic components into core infrastructure directly tied to national security." Regarding China’s push for semiconductor self-sufficiency, he pointed out that export controls on advanced chipmaking tools such as lithography equipment impose a "structural limitation" for now.
Miller assessed that "as the 'commodity trap'—where technological differentiation disappears and companies are forced into pure price competition—fades away, Samsung and SK will be able to sustain their advantageous position." He added, "As AI models grow larger, the performance of AI accelerators is determined not only by computing power but also by how quickly they can retrieve data, which is structurally driving up demand for HBM." He stressed that "these kinds of cutting-edge semiconductors are no longer auxiliary components; they have become core elements of AI infrastructure." With demand for memory chips increasingly concentrated in data centers running large-scale AI models, the very nature of memory demand is changing.
The elevated "status" of the two companies is expected to be reflected directly in their earnings this year and next. Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are scheduled to announce their fourth-quarter results for last year and full-year guidance for 2025 on the 29th, about an hour apart. Market forecasts suggest their combined operating profit could reach 100 trillion won. Analysts say expanded investment in AI servers and a product mix shift centered on HBM have driven the earnings rebound. Brokerage houses are even more optimistic about this year, with some projecting that, as AI data center investments ramp up in earnest, the two firms’ combined operating profit could climb toward the 200 trillion won level.
soup@fnnews.com Im Su-bin, Jung Won-il, Lee Dong-hyuk Reporter