Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) sharply expanded its share of the high-bandwidth memory market in the second quarter, narrowing the gap with leader SK hynix (000660.KS) as competition for dominance in the memory segment intensifies.
Samsung held a 33% revenue share of the HBM market in the second quarter, according to market research firm Counterpoint Research on the 3rd. That marks a 12 percentage-point jump from 21% in the previous quarter. The figure still trails SK hynix at 50%, but the gap between the two narrowed to 17 percentage points from 37 percentage points in a single quarter.
Samsung began mass-production shipments of HBM4, the latest generation of the memory destined for Nvidia's new Vera Rubin chip, in February, ahead of any rival in the industry, and started booking meaningful revenue from the second quarter, earlier than its competitors. The company reached $1 billion in HBM revenue, or about 1.36 trillion won, within four months of starting mass-production shipments. SK hynix, which began HBM4 shipments later than Samsung, defended its top ranking on the strength of HBM3E, its existing flagship product, but its share fell 8 percentage points in one quarter.
Micron's share slipped 3 percentage points to 18% over the same period, leaving the combined share of Samsung and SK hynix slightly higher. HBM4 carries a significantly higher unit price than the earlier HBM3E, and demand from big tech firms racing to develop new chips has surged, setting up a full-scale contest among all three suppliers for supply leadership in the second half.
"Most HBM revenue is currently coming from HBM3E," Counterpoint Research said, adding that HBM4 shipments are expected to become meaningful from the second half.
While Samsung trailed SK hynix in HBM, it cemented its lead in the overall DRAM market with a 38% share in the second quarter, helped by a focus on commodity DRAM, where prices rose more sharply. SK hynix held second place at 25%, down 14 percentage points from a year earlier. Third-ranked Micron at 24% and fourth-ranked CXMT at 10% are gaining ground as they move into the opening.
