SK Hynix CEO says memory chip shortage will last until 2030

SK Hynix ↗ 10.59% CEO Kwak Noh-jung said on Thursday that the memory semiconductor supply shortage is expected to persist through the end of 2030, with no clear signs of a downturn on the horizon. The remarks came after the company broke ground on its first U.S. production facility in West Lafayette, Indiana — a $4 billion high-bandwidth memory advanced packaging fab that will begin mass production in the second half of 2029.chosun+1

"No one can know exactly when the shortage will end. However, there are currently no clear signs of a downturn," Kwak told reporters following the ceremony. "We expect the supply shortage to continue until the end of 2030."chosun

A Structural Shift in Memory Markets

Kwak argued that even when a downturn eventually arrives, it will look different from past cycles. In previous decades, memory was a commodity product where companies competed by increasing production, leading to boom-and-bust swings. In the AI era, he said, memory is shifting toward customized products developed in close collaboration with customers, making demand more predictable and downturns less severe.chosun

The forecast aligns with statements from Micron Technology ↗ 2.78%, the U.S. memory maker whose executive vice president Sumit Sadana has said data center customer demand is outstripping supply by 50 percent, with meaningful new capacity unlikely to arrive before 2028. Micron plans to roughly double capital expenditures to around $26 billion in fiscal 2026 and push spending above $45 billion in fiscal 2027 to address the gap.ad-hoc-news+1

Indiana as a U.S. Beachhead

SK Hynix's Indiana facility, built in partnership with Purdue University, is scheduled to open its cleanroom by October 2028 and produce what the company calls the first "Made in USA HBM". Reuters reported that the plant will manufacture HBM4E chips beginning in the third quarter of 2029.news.skhynix+2

Asked whether the company faces pressure to invest in front-end manufacturing in the United States, Kwak said SK Hynix is "open to investing anywhere that can provide sufficient resources such as water, power, talent, and subsidies," though nothing beyond Indiana has been finalized.chosun

Workforce Concerns Loom

Both companies face the same constraint beyond silicon: people. Kwak acknowledged that securing skilled workers is "a critical issue for sustaining our business in Indiana," adding that the company is working with local universities to train enough engineers and technicians within a few years. A McKinsey projection cited during the press conference estimated the U.S. could face a shortage of up to 150,000 semiconductor workers by 2030.chosun