Samsung Profit Jumps 1,800% as AI Chip Demand Powers Record Quarter

Samsung Electronics posted a record second-quarter operating profit of 89.5 trillion won ($62 billion), up 1,814% year over year, as artificial intelligence (AI) demand for memory chips pushed sales to an all-time high.

Revenue climbed 28% quarter over quarter to 171.5 trillion won, a fresh company record. It narrowly missed analyst forecasts, even as profit beat expectations.

AI Server Demand Drives the Memory Boom

Samsung’s Device Solutions division, home to its memory chip business, posted a 56% quarterly sales jump. The unit’s memory arm set records for both revenue and operating profit.

Samsung prioritized server products to meet AI capacity needs. Server sales reached a record share of its chip mix as a result.

The company also scaled up production of HBM4, a high-bandwidth memory chip used in AI processors. It shipped the industry’s first samples of HBM4E, the next-generation version of that chip, to major customers.

Samsung expects that momentum to continue. It forecasts accelerating demand for server memory and high-bandwidth chips through the second half of 2026, as AI infrastructure spending broadens further.

The forecast follows Samsung’s recent AI chip supply deals with Nvidia and Broadcom.

Record Results Follow a Sharp Selloff

The earnings beat came a day after a sharp selloff. Samsung shares fell more than 12% on Wednesday, and rival SK Hynix tumbled nearly 20%. Traders were unwinding AI-related bets over fears that profit forecasts had run too far ahead of reality.

SK Hynix also reported a record profit on Wednesday, but it missed analyst estimates. Both chipmakers remain central to the AI memory stock rally that has defined South Korean equities in 2026, alongside the broader KOSPI’s AI-driven rebound.

MS Hwang, an analyst at Counterpoint, said that Samsung’s memory strength is spilling into its other business units.

“In short, Samsung is leveraging its strong position in memory to aggressively capture share across most of its business units.”

Analysts broadly expect the memory boom to persist as data center operators keep expanding AI capacity. This week’s swings suggest some investors are questioning how long the streak can last.