South Korea-Japan chip cooperation is heating up, with SK Hynix Research establishing a joint venture memory chip factory in Japan.

Cooperation between South Korea and Japan in the semiconductor industry is heating up, with SK Hynix ramping up its global expansion, and Japan may become a new location for its strategic layout.

On August 31, according to Bloomberg, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won stated that SK Hynix is evaluating several potential factory locations, with Japan being one of the options. The company is currently conducting a "comprehensive survey of various regions in Japan," looking for areas with good electricity and water resources, but has not yet determined a specific location, nor disclosed potential partners or the products to be produced.

This strategic move comes at a time when AI is driving continued growth in demand for memory chips. SK Hynix has already planned a production capacity investment of approximately 54 trillion won in South Korea and held a groundbreaking ceremony last week for an advanced memory packaging facility in Indiana, USA. If the Japanese project is implemented, it will further enhance its global production capacity network.

The cooperation model is yet to be determined; joint venture factory construction is just one of the options.

The specific form of SK Hynix's investment in Japan is still undetermined.

According to reports citing sources familiar with the matter, the company is evaluating various options, including joint investment and establishing a joint venture, and has not ruled out the possibility of acquiring a Japanese company. The final choice will depend on the partner and the type of products to be produced.

Japan's appeal to SK Hynix lies not only in its favorable conditions for factory construction, such as electricity and water resources, but also in its relatively mature semiconductor industry chain. SK Hynix has suppliers in Japan, including Tokyo Electron and Namics, and its customers include companies such as Sony and Nintendo.

Furthermore, SK Hynix has long had connections with the Japanese memory industry. The company currently holds shares in Kioxia indirectly, and SK Hynix CEO Guo Luzheng also stated last week that the company is "carefully studying how to jointly develop the NAND flash memory market with customers and suppliers."

This means that if the factory construction plan in Japan proceeds, SK Hynix will not only gain new production capacity, but also is expected to further strengthen its cooperation with Japanese customers and suppliers.

SK Hynix accelerates global production expansion as AI demand explodes.

The AI boom is driving continued growth in demand for HBM and NAND flash memory. SK Hynix's HBM products are widely used by AI chip manufacturers such as Nvidia, and its NAND business is also benefiting from the continued expansion of data centers by large technology companies.

Exploring new production bases outside of South Korea and the United States also helps SK Hynix diversify supply chain risks and get closer to overseas customers. Meanwhile, Japan is actively attracting international semiconductor companies to invest and expand production, providing SK Hynix with the policy and supply chain foundation for its expansion in Japan.

Choi Tae-won stated that South Korea and Japan are working together to build an "economic community," and the two countries "can not only cooperate, but also complement each other."

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