Samsung and SK Hynix plan $590 billion chip investment as AI demand sends memory prices soaring
The Decoder
Published Jun 29, 2026 Reviewed Jul 2, 2026 ✓ Reviewed by citations.press editors
Samsung and SK Hynix plan to invest $590 billion in expanding chip production.
590 billion USD · chip production investment
Samsung and SK Hynix, companies
800 trillion won will be allocated to four new factories in the southwest.
800 trillion won · new factories4 factories · new factories
Samsung and SK Hynix, companies
81 trillion won will be spent on a packaging center.
81 trillion won · packaging center
Samsung and SK Hynix, companies
30 trillion won will be invested over 15 years in next‑generation chips.
30 trillion won · next‑generation chips
Samsung and SK Hynix, companies
Memory prices are forecast to rise about 45% in Q3 2026 and about 35% in Q4 2026.
about 45 percent · memory pricesabout 35 percent · memory prices
Jefferies Equity Research (via wccftech), analysts
Memory prices are expected to rise about 42.5% in 2027.
about 42.5 percent · memory prices
Jefferies Equity Research (via wccftech), analysts
15–20% of new capacity is projected to come online in 2028.
about 17.5 percent · new capacity
Jefferies Equity Research (via wccftech), analysts
Samsung and SK Hynix together hold close to 80% of the global high‑bandwidth memory chip market.
about 80 percent · global market share
Samsung and SK Hynix, companies
Samsung and SK Hynix, backed by the South Korean government, plan to pour $590 billion into expanding chip production. Of that total, 800 trillion won goes toward four new factories in the country's southwest, 81 trillion won toward a packaging center, and 30 trillion won over 15 years toward next-generation chips. The initiative is part of President Lee Jae Myung's push to boost regional economic growth, driven by surging demand from AI data centers.
The investments can't come soon enough. According to Jefferies Equity Research (via wccftech), memory prices will jump 40 to 50 percent in Q3 2026 and another 30 to 40 percent in Q4. For 2027, analysts expect a further 40 to 45 percent increase. Relief may not arrive until 2028, when 15 to 20 percent of new capacity comes online. Samsung and SK Hynix together control close to 80 percent of the global market for high-bandwidth memory chips, the kind AI workloads depend on.
Rising memory prices are already pushing up costs across consumer electronics. Apple, for one, has hiked prices on Macs and MacBooks.
