SK Hynix Chairman: Most Severe "Memory Shortage" Expected in 2027, AI Agent Usage May Grow 77-Fold Within 5 Years

Odaily News: Recently, SK Hynix Chairman Choi Tae-won gave an exclusive interview to the media at the company's headquarters in South Korea. During the interview, he once again emphasized the explosive growth in memory demand and stated that the most severe "memory shortage" will occur next year.

He noted that demand for memory from the AI ecosystem has already exceeded SK Hynix's supply capacity. "Current demand is explosive," Choi said. "All my customers are requesting nearly double the supply volume of their original needs." He stated that capacity expansion could take four to five years, describing the scramble among companies for memory chips as "like a war." Without sufficient memory, customers "cannot produce AI computing devices or AI chips." He also added that as demand for AI servers continues to surge, HBM high-bandwidth memory is in short supply, with many tech giants even arriving in South Korea early to secure long-term agreements.

Choi also warned that next year could see the most severe memory shortage in history. He compared today's AI to a four-year-old child, noting that as the industry matures, memory demand will grow substantially. He predicted that AI agent usage could increase 77-fold within five years. (Cailian Press)