A visitor takes a photo of a model of SK Hynix’s high bandwidth memory (HBM) technology at the 2025 World IT Show in Seoul, April 24, 2025.
Jung Young Jae | AFP | Getty Images
South Korea-based memory maker SK Hynix said on Tuesday it will invest 19 trillion Korean won ($12.9 billion) in building a new advanced packaging factory to expand production to meet growing demand related to artificial intelligence.
The new facility will be located in Cheongju, South Korea, and will further develop the company’s existing footprint. Construction will begin in April and is targeted for completion by the end of 2027, the company said in a statement.
The factory will focus on advanced packaging that combines multiple memory chips into a single high-density unit to improve performance and energy efficiency while reducing overall size.
SK Hynix is one of the world’s largest memory chip manufacturers and a leader in so-called high-bandwidth memory (HBM), used in artificial intelligence processors, including those designed by the U.S. chipmaker. Nvidia.
The investment comes as SK Hynix seeks to meet rising demand for HBM as global AI competition intensifies, a trend that is driving up prices and benefiting the memory giant.
SK Hynix’s rival Samsung Electronics has also announced plans to expand HBM production in recent months.
According to industry forecasts cited by SK Hynix, the HBM market is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 33% from 2025 to 2030.
However, the manufacturing process for HBM memory is much more demanding than that for memory used in most consumer electronics products. As chipmakers shift to meet AI-driven demands, supplies of traditional memory are tightening, contributing to soaring prices and raising concerns about rising costs across the electronics industry.
Taipei-based technology research firm TrendForce announced last week that it expects the average price of dynamic random access memory, including HBM, to rise by 50% to 55% this quarter compared to the fourth quarter of 2025.
Dynamic random access memory (DRAM) generally refers to the primary volatile memory found in most computers for temporary data storage.
Rising memory prices are a challenge for electronics manufacturers, but they are also boosting profits for memory manufacturers. Last week, Samsung announced that its operating profit for the December quarter will be nearly triple that of the same period a year ago.
Meanwhile, SK Hynix is considering the possibility of listing in the U.S. in response to the big hit in Korean stocks in 2025. The stock has risen about 12% since the beginning of the year, but was down about 2.5% in Tuesday trading.
