SK hynix CEO Kwak Noh-jung visited CES 2026, held in Las Vegas from January 5 to 8, to gain firsthand insight into global AI trends and discuss technology innovation strategies centered on AI memory with key customers.
During the exhibition, Kwak spent considerable time strengthening strategic partnerships with global big tech companies leading AI infrastructure. He closely examined next-generation platform architectures and long-term business visions of major players, while exploring collaboration opportunities to position SK hynix technology as a core driver of future customer platforms.
On January 5, Kwak attended a keynote session by NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang at the Fontainebleau Hotel, where he gained insights into new visions for AI-related businesses. Later that day, he participated in AMD CEO Lisa Su’s keynote at the Venetian Hotel, reviewing newly unveiled AI accelerators and system architectures. He also held discussions with senior executives overseeing AI infrastructure, sales, and global marketing to define the role of SK hynix solutions in future platforms and to refine differentiation strategies in performance, power efficiency, and overall system optimization.
In addition, Kwak met with approximately 25 major customers and partners to explore cooperation opportunities focused on core AI memory solutions such as HBM. Through these engagements, SK hynix aims to expand partnerships across the AI ecosystem and generate synergies throughout the entire supply chain.
On January 6, Kwak visited the SK hynix customer exhibition area at the Venetian Expo, where he reviewed exhibition operations and encouraged employees who had worked extensively to prepare for CES. He inspected the exhibition structures in detail, assessing the company’s AI memory solution portfolio and future technology roadmap, while emphasizing the significance of CES as the first global stage for engaging customers in the new year.
SK hynix prepared its CES 2026 exhibition under the theme “Innovative AI, Sustainable Tomorrow.” The showcase featured next-generation AI memory solutions optimized for surging AI computing demand and increasingly complex workloads, including the HBM4 16-high 48GB product, HBM3E, SOCAMM2, and LPDDR6. In particular, the AI System Demo Zone visualized customer-tailored custom HBM architectures, offering an intuitive overview of the company’s next-generation memory technologies.
Global demand for AI computing has increased by 100 times over the past three years and is expected to grow by another 100 times over the next five years. As a result, AI memory has emerged as a critical factor determining chip and system performance, with rapidly rising customer demand for innovations in bandwidth, capacity, and power efficiency.
Kwak actively navigated the CES venue to assess these market shifts firsthand, while also focusing on communicating SK hynix’s AI solutions and technological capabilities through meticulous attention to exhibition details. Having closely listened to customer and partner feedback through consecutive meetings, the company expects to respond more proactively in future technology competition.
Earlier this year, Kwak stated in his New Year’s address that SK hynix aims to evolve into a true “Full Stack AI Memory Creator” by creatively delivering and implementing the value customers need most. His activities at CES 2026 further demonstrated the company’s commitment to expanding its influence within the AI ecosystem and strengthening global technology leadership and partnerships based on its established market-leading position.
SK hynix continues to solidify its status as a market leader in AI memory, particularly in HBM. According to Counterpoint Research, the company held a 62 percent share of global HBM shipments in the second quarter of 2025 and maintained a 57 percent revenue share in the third quarter. Goldman Sachs has also projected that SK hynix will retain a dominant position in the HBM3E and HBM4 segments through at least 2026, sustaining more than 50 percent of the overall HBM market.
