[Edaily Reporter KIM YOON JI ] SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won described joint production with SK hynix(000660)and Japan’s semiconductor giant Kioxia Holdings as “one option.” He explained that the group is also considering building a factory in Japan.
In an interview with Japan’s Asahi Shimbun published on the 2nd, Chairman Choi described Kioxia as “a company with many strengths” and expressed his willingness to collaborate in areas such as joint production, research and development (R&D), and supply chain sharing. SK hynix competes with Kioxia in NAND flash memory production while also holding an indirect stake in the company.
Kioxia has currently established a joint venture with the U.S. semiconductor company SanDisk to jointly produce its flagship products. Citing this as an example, Chairman Choi emphasized, “If SK hynix is included in Kioxia’s future strategy, we are open to becoming partners at any time.” He also mentioned the possibility of jointly building a factory.
However, he also stressed that “if we can no longer build any kind of cooperative relationship, we will terminate our investment in Kioxia,” indicating that the investment relationship could be dissolved if cooperation fails to progress.

Against the backdrop of the global generative AI boom, Chairman Choi assessed that there is currently a 20–30% shortage of memory semiconductors for data centers. He stated that it would be difficult to meet demand with the large-scale investments currently underway in Korea alone, and that SK is therefore considering building a new overseas factory, with Japan as a top candidate. He spoke highly of Japan, noting that it has a well-established semiconductor production environment due to the concentration of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, materials, and component suppliers.
He noted that Japan’s cultural emphasis on manufacturing aligns well with SK’s values, stating, “Even considering risks and cultural factors, it is a very attractive candidate location.”
He revealed that SK has already received proposals from multiple local governments in Japan to host the factory and that the company may announce specific investment plans as early as this year.
According to market research firm Counterpoint Research, based on NAND shipments from April to June 2026, SamsungElectronics(005930)held the top spot with a 25% market share. SK hynix ranked second with 22%, and Kioxia ranked third with 14%. Combined, SK hynix and Kioxia’s market share totals 36%, surpassing that of SamsungElectronics.
Kioxia told the Asahi Shimbun, “We are collaborating with SK hynix on research and development of magnetoresistive random-access memory (MRAM), and SK hynix is also one of our DRAM suppliers,” adding, “We hope to maintain a good relationship going forward.”
Kioxia was originally Toshiba’s semiconductor division. In August of this year, Kioxia’s largest shareholder changed from Toshiba to a special purpose company (SPC) managed by a U.S. investment fund. SK hynix holds convertible bonds issued by this SPC. If SK hynix converts these bonds into stock in the future, it will secure the majority of the SPC’s voting rights, which could further increase its influence over Kioxia’s management. However, under an existing agreement with Kioxia, SK hynix cannot hold more than 15% of the voting rights—either directly or indirectly—without Kioxia’s consent until 2028.