SK Hynix Raises 2025 R&D Spending 35% to Strengthen AI HBM Lead

SK Hynix has become a prime beneficiary of the AI infrastructure boom, using its lead in high-bandwidth memory, or HBM, to supply chips that feed data to AI accelerators. Demand for HBM, server DRAM and enterprise solid-state drives, combined with sharply higher memory prices, has turned a cyclical recovery into a semiconductor supercycle. KB Securities estimated that global technology companies and AI data-center operators represented about 70% of second-quarter revenue.

On July 29, SK Hynix reported 2026 second-quarter revenue of 79.32 trillion won and operating profit of 60.54 trillion won, up 257% and 557% from a year earlier, respectively. Its operating margin reached 76%. Net profit surged to 93.92 trillion won, producing a 118% net margin, as all three measures set quarterly records. Even so, revenue and operating profit missed a 14-brokerage consensus of 84.1 trillion won and 64.1 trillion won, showing how elevated expectations have become.

SK Hynix, the global leader in high-bandwidth memory for AI, decided to issue American depositary receipts to reinforce its technological edge and raise about 15 trillion won for advanced chipmaking equipment from ASML. The move is intended to fund its expansion through U.S. capital markets. It would be the largest foreign IPO in Nasdaq’s history and is targeting a valuation of $29 billion, with the market expecting AI to break the traditional semiconductor cycle.

Despite volatility in its parent company’s share price, SK Hynix’s ADR offering was seven times oversubscribed in the United States. The ADRs were ultimately priced at a premium at $149 and formally began trading on Nasdaq on July 13. They opened at $170 and closed their first session up 13%. The rush into AI memory has drawn global investor interest, while rival Samsung Electronics is also reportedly considering an ADR offering.

High-bandwidth memory, or HBM, is a critical component that gives AI accelerators rapid access to data, and supply has fallen short as data centers expand worldwide. SK hynix currently controls about 60% of the HBM market and is using advanced packaging and next-generation products to strengthen its lead while competing with Samsung Electronics and Micron for orders from major cloud providers.

SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won recently pledged to sharply increase SK hynix's HBM output and accelerate the latest HBM4 into mass production to narrow the supply-demand gap for AI chips. He said adding wafer capacity takes at least four years and that tight global supplies could persist until 2030. The reports did not disclose the investment amount for the expansion or a specific production start date.