SK Hynix is now ready to slaughter Samsung's cash cow in 2026

High-bandwidth memory should have been a major cash cow for Samsung as the strong demand for AI chips has resulted in HBM sales going parabolic. However, the company's struggles with HBM3E are well documented, and it's yet to win NVIDIA's approval to join the supply chain. 

SK Hynix has fully capitalized on Samsung's missteps in this segment, becoming the world's leading supplier of high-bandwidth memory. Samsung focused on correcting course with the next-generation HBM4 but SK Hynix has already announced that it's ready to begin mass production of the next-gen memory chips. 

High-bandwidth memory chips are used in AI accelerators. NVIDIA is one of the world's top buyers of HBM chips as its AI accelerators are highly sought after by both companies and countries who don't want to miss out on the AI revolution. 

SK Hynix has comprehensively defeated Samsung on HBM3E but there's expectation that Samsung may be able to fight back on HBM4. It may have a tough fight on its hands as SK Hynix has confirmed the development work on its HBM4 memory has been completed and preparations for mass production are now underway.

It's got a leg up on both Samsung and Micron who are also working on HBM4 chips. SK Hynix's chips would likely feature in NVIDIA's upcoming Rubin AI accelerators and the company may once again emerge as one of NVIDIA's top suppliers, ranking in tens of billions of dollars in revenue.

It remains to be seen whether Samsung will be able to fight back or will it leave this cash chow for SK Hynix to gobble up again. The company said back in July that its HBM4 samples have been shipped to clients and that it intends to begin mass production before the end of this year.