SK Hynix is exploring something that has never been done before: making memory chips in the United States.
Reuters reported on September 16 that the Korean memory giant is discussing several possibilities with Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC), including leasing part of Intel’s long-delayed Ohio complex or forming a joint venture involving Intel and large cloud customers. SK Hynix said no specific plans have been finalized.
For Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:AT), the talks are important because one of their strongest strategic advantages is being the leading memory producer in the US at a time when AI has made DRAM and HBM increasingly scarce.
SK Hynix May Give Intel Another Path to Its Delayed Ohio Site
Intel has committed enormous capital to Ohio, with the larger project potentially reaching around $100 billion over time. Delays have pushed planned production into the next decade. A tenant or joint-venture partner can therefore help Intel share the financial burden of developing the Ohio site instead of depending entirely on the demand of the foundry itself to justify the buildout.
That’s a bull case. The bear case is that exploration discussions are far from revenue. Bringing advanced Korean memory production to the US could face cost issues, technology transfer restrictions and objections from Seoul. Intel still needs a core manufacturing roadmap to work.
Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU) sits on the other side of the equation. AI demand has pushed memory prices and availability into a strong cycle, and Micron has been pursuing a major U.S. manufacturing expansion. Other domestic manufacturing incentives and customer interest in the plan’s secure supply support.
SK Hynix’s successful move could eventually chip away at part of Micron’s US supply differentiation. U.S. cloud companies will gain more potential domestic suppliers, while additional long-term memory capacity could release a market that currently supports exorbitant prices.
Hedge funds loaded up on both chipmakers
Insider Monkey tracked 138 hedge funds that held Intel in Q2, up sharply from 112 in Q1. AQR Capital Management holds approximately 10.7 million shares after shedding about 7% of its stake. Micron’s count rose to 184 funds from 154, one of the stronger quarterly gains among big semiconductor names. Coatue’s management boosted MU’s stock dramatically during the quarter.
Intel had about 152.2 million shares for sale as of August 31, about 3% of the public float and 1.7 days to cover.
The talk didn’t rescue Intel’s foundry strategy or destroy Micron overnight. They show what shortage AI is doing to the supply chain. Memory manufacturing has become strategic enough that SK Hynix is considering putting advanced capacity on American soil, and the Ohio project delayed Intel suddenly provides valuable potential assets to negotiate with.