Samsung Electronics Posts Record 750% Profit Surge on AI Chip Demand
April 30, 2026 — South Korean technology giant Samsung Electronics reported record quarterly results on Thursday, with operating profit jumping 750 percent year-on-year, driven by surging demand for high-performance chips used in artificial intelligence data centers.
Record-Breaking Numbers
Samsung’s quarterly operating profit reached 57.2 trillion won ($38.4 billion), far exceeding market expectations. Net profit came in at 47.1 trillion won, beating forecasts in a Bloomberg survey of analysts. Quarterly revenue hit 133.9 trillion won, also an all-time high.
The chip division performed particularly well, with profit soaring to 53.7 trillion won, accounting for the bulk of the unit’s total earnings.
AI Demand Driving Growth
In its earnings report, Samsung said it had “achieved record quarterly revenue and operating profit through AI technology innovations and proactive market response.” The company’s memory division “surpassed its quarterly sales record by addressing high-value-added AI demand despite limited supply availability, with industry-wide memory price increases also a contributing factor.”
Samsung expects “strong memory demand to continue” through the second quarter as the buildout of AI infrastructure proceeds at pace.
South Korean Markets Hit Record High
Buoyed by Samsung’s strong results and those of US technology giants, South Korea’s benchmark Kospi stock index opened at a fresh record high above 6,700 points on Thursday. Samsung’s shares have risen approximately 300 percent over the past year as the AI boom drives South Korean growth and pushes the stock market to unprecedented levels.
Consumer Electronics Face Price Pressure
Strong orders for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) — a type of chip used in data centers and AI accelerators — are pushing up prices across the entire memory chip market. This means the cost of less specialized chips used in consumer electronics is also rising, threatening higher prices for smartphones, laptops, and other devices worldwide.
Samsung and rival SK hynix have emerged as key suppliers of the high-performance chips demanded by companies racing to keep up with the fast-evolving AI industry. The South Korean government has pledged to make the country one of the world’s top three AI powers alongside the United States and China.
Industry Outlook
Analysts note that while supply capacity remains constrained, the continued expansion of AI infrastructure will provide long-term growth momentum for the memory chip industry. However, the broad increase in chip prices could also have ripple effects on the consumer electronics market, eventually passing through to end consumers.
Source: France 24/AFP