Samsung Electronics posted record quarterly earnings on July 7, powered by an unprecedented surge in demand for artificial intelligence memory chips that cemented the company’s position as the biggest beneficiary of the global AI infrastructure boom.
The South Korean technology giant said preliminary second-quarter revenue rose to $124 billion, while operating profit reached a record $65 billion, exceeding the company’s entire operating profit for last year.
Revenue increased 27.7% from the previous quarter and 129.3% from a year earlier. Operating profit climbed 56.2%sequentially and soared 1,810.3% from the same period last year.
The results were driven almost entirely by Samsung’s semiconductor business as global technology companies accelerated spending on AI data centers. Heavy investment by Nvidia and other hyperscale cloud providers boosted demand not only for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) but also for server DRAM and conventional memory chips.
Demand continued to outpace supply throughout the quarter, keeping memory prices at elevated levels. Industry data showed contract prices for mainstream PC DRAM rose another 5% in June to a record high, while HBM and server memory maintained strong pricing and margins as AI server deployments expanded.
As the world’s largest memory-chip producer, Samsung benefited from both rising shipments and higher selling prices. Analysts said AI-driven demand has broadened beyond premium HBM products into conventional memory, significantly improving profitability across the company’s memory business.
The quarter also set a new benchmark among global technology companies. Samsung’s operating profit of $65 billionsurpassed Nvidia’s previous record quarterly operating profit of roughly $53.5 billion, as well as Apple’s record of approximately $50.9 billion.
Analysts said the reported earnings already include provisions for special performance bonuses for employees in Samsung’s semiconductor division. Excluding those one-time expenses, which market estimates place at several billion dollars, operating profit likely would have exceeded $73 billion.
Outside semiconductors, earnings were more subdued. Samsung’s Device eXperience (DX) division, which includes smartphones, televisions and home appliances, faced seasonal weakness in mobile sales and slower-than-expected consumer demand for televisions and appliances. Samsung Display and Harman were estimated to have delivered results largely unchanged from the previous quarter.
Samsung is also stepping up development of next-generation HBM products as competition intensifies in AI memory. Analysts expect demand for high-performance memory to remain robust as cloud providers continue expanding AI infrastructure and building new data centers.
Rival SK Hynix is also expected to report record quarterly earnings later this month, reinforcing expectations that the AI-driven memory upcycle still has room to run.
The latest results have eased concerns that the semiconductor industry is approaching a cyclical peak. With AI infrastructure investment showing few signs of slowing and memory supply expected to remain tight, analysts increasingly believe the industry’s current boom could prove more durable than previously anticipated.
