SK Hynix gets 72% of its Q1 sales from US chip buyers

SK Hynix reported that US sales made up 72% of its total revenue in Q1 2025.

This was driven by rising demand for high bandwidth memory (HBM) chips and enterprise solid state drives (eSSDs) from major US tech firms.

US revenue reached 12.8 trillion won (US$9.1 billion), up from 6.3 trillion won a year earlier, when the US accounted for 50% of sales.

Total quarterly sales stood at 17.6 trillion won (US$12.58 billion).

The company has sold out its 2025 production of the 12-layer HBM3E chip. Nvidia is listed among its major customers.

🔗 Source: Yonhap

🧠 Food for thought

1️⃣ SK hynix’s emergence as the HBM market leader reflects broader AI industry shifts

SK hynix has strategically positioned itself as the dominant force in high bandwidth memory, controlling approximately 70% of global HBM sales as of early 2025 1.

This market leadership has translated into concrete financial results, with HBM now comprising 40% of the company’s DRAM revenue following a 58% sequential growth in HBM revenue to $4.2 billion 2.

The company’s ascendance is further evidenced by its recent overtaking of Samsung as the world’s leading DRAM manufacturer, capturing 36% of global DRAM sales in Q1 2025 3.

This transformation reflects SK hynix’s deliberate pivot away from traditional memory markets toward high-value AI products, abandoning less profitable segments like CMOS Image Sensors to focus resources on AI memory 4.

The company’s production capabilities have become a critical factor in the global AI supply chain, with their reported 80% yields for HBM3E production significantly outperforming competitors like Samsung (40%) 1.

2️⃣ The HBM market’s explosive growth is reshaping semiconductor industry dynamics

The high bandwidth memory market is experiencing unprecedented growth, projected to expand at a CAGR of 26.2% through 2034 5 and potentially exceed $100 billion over the next decade 1.

This growth is directly tied to the rising computational demands of AI applications, with data centers and server applications accounting for approximately 60% of the HBM market 6.