The world's largest memory maker (DRAM/HBM/NAND) — plus a leading-edge foundry and the Galaxy device franchise
AI exposure 43% — derived from reported segment revenue, not asserted.
Silicon Layer → Memory & Storage ICs · figures rebased to Q2 2026, reported 2026-07-30
Memory is now the largest business on every axis the methodology weighs: DS semiconductors were 74% of Q2 2026 consolidated revenue (Memory alone ~70%; >=65% even charging all intersegment sales to DS) and ~99.7% of group operating profit, and DS has taken 86-92% of group capex every year since FY2023. FY2026 revenue leadership is arithmetically locked (DS leads DX by ~KRW 109T at half-year against a ~KRW 50T/quarter DX run-rate). The guard-clause that previously kept B6 primary — 'never the smaller AI-hyped slice' — no longer applies: memory is not the smaller slice. Samsung's role in the AI build-out is HBM4/DRAM into NVIDIA's Vera Rubin platform and the hyperscalers, not the Galaxy channel.
Also tagged: emerging in AI Platforms → Consumer AI & Device Platforms; emerging in Silicon Layer → Foundry Services; emerging in Silicon Layer → Semiconductor Devices.
Samsung Electronics (KRW 171.5T Q2 2026 consolidated, an all-time quarterly high) — a semiconductor company with a device arm, on the reported numbers. DS semiconductors 74% (Memory ~70% = primary B1, the AI core: DRAM/HBM/NAND into NVIDIA and the hyperscalers; Foundry ~2% emerging; System LSI ~2%) + DX devices ~28% (Galaxy/MX, VD/DA, Harman = B6 secondary). Division figures include intersegment sales, so shares sum above 100% of consolidated; charging every intersegment won to DS still leaves it ~65%. DS took ~99.7% of Q2 group operating profit and 86-92% of capex every year since FY2023.…
Moat. Vertically-integrated breadth (memory leadership + foundry + devices/displays) + scale; HBM/DRAM + foundry are the AI-relevant pillars.
Bottleneck / pricing power. Pricing power is at the strong end this cycle, not the moderate one: Q2 2026 DRAM ASPs rose mid-40% QoQ and NAND ASPs high-60% QoQ, the DS division earned KRW 89.2T on KRW 127.5T of revenue (~70% divisional margin), and management guides capacity — not demand — as the binding constraint, with the supply-demand gap widening into 2027. The durable qualifier is position: Samsung still trails SK hynix in HBM and TSMC in foundry, so the premium is cycle-priced rather than position-priced.
Role in the AI stack. The memory layer of the AI build-out — HBM/DRAM supply — with a foundry option and a consumer-device arm attached.
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