US investors will soon get access to SK Hynix, another memory maker riding the AI boom

South Korean memory chip maker SK Hynix, rival to Samsung and U.S.-based Micron , is planning to sell nearly 17.8 million shares in a U.S. IPO, the company said on Monday. Should its shares sell well (and there’s indication that they will), the company could raise around $28 billion, based on SK Hynix’s closing share price last Friday in Seoul, Bloomberg reports .

SK Hynix will be offering American depositary receipts (ADRs), a type of certificate that lets U.S. investors buy a foreign stock without trading directly on an overseas exchange. Each ADR will represent a tenth of a common share. It is expected to price those securities on Thursday and begin trading on Friday.

Like Micron, SK Hynix is riding an AI-fueled boom credited to AI in both sales and stock price. Its first quarter revenues were up nearly 200% over the same quarter last year, it said, and its stock is up about 260% so far this year. This is because systems that run AI are very memory intensive. As hyperscalers like Amazon, Microsoft, Google, and Oracle race to build out so-called AI factories, and as new AI data centers multiply nationwide, demand has outpaced supply, creating a shortage of memory chips — including High Bandwidth Memory (HBM), DRAM, and NAND (the different types of chips that store and move data inside AI systems). The situation has been called “ RAMageddon .” Apple executives said the shortage is forcing it to raise prices on Mac computers and iPads .

South Korean tech companies, led by SK Hynix and Samsung, have vowed to spend over $550 billion on building out new manufacturing capacity to keep up. That’s actually a risky venture. By the time those facilities are built, memory needs for AI may change, leaving them with more supply than the market wants and, potentially, crashing prices. But for now, Wall Street is looking for another Nvidia and memory chip makers are among the closest options that they have.

Micron, the closest U.S. comparison, has shot up nearly 700% over the past year to a more than $1 trillion valuation , fueled by record AI-driven memory demand and revenue.

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Editorial analysis

The imminent initial public offering (IPO) of SK Hynix in the United States highlights the growing demand for memory chips driven by artificial intelligence, a phenomenon that can also be observed in Brazil. The Brazilian tech sector, although still developing, may benefit from the wave of investments and innovations that the AI revolution is bringing. Local companies operating in hardware and software, especially those focused on AI solutions, may find growth opportunities and strategic partnerships as global demand for memory and processing increases.

Moreover, the current chip shortage, dubbed "RAMageddon," underscores the importance of investments in infrastructure and manufacturing in Brazil. The country has significant potential to become a tech hub in Latin America, but this requires a robust commitment to research and development, as well as policies that encourage innovation and local production. The rising prices of products like computers and mobile devices, due to the chip shortage, may impact the Brazilian market, making tech products less accessible to consumers.

Finally, SK Hynix's strategy to expand its production capacity, despite the associated risks, reflects a global trend where tech companies are preparing to meet future demand. Brazil should closely monitor these movements, as the ability to adapt and innovate will be crucial for local companies to avoid falling behind in an increasingly competitive and globalized market. What follows will be the capacity of these companies to strategically position themselves in a landscape where AI and memory technology are becoming increasingly interdependent.

US investors will soon get access to SK Hynix, another memory maker riding the AI boom

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