Samsung Electronics has officially crossed a $1 trillion market valuation after its shares surged more than 15% on Wednesday. The jump makes Samsung only the second Asian company to reach the $1 trillion milestone, following Taiwanese chip giant TSMC. According to FactSet data, Samsung first crossed the mark on February 26.
The company’s stock also reached a new all-time high and is currently on track for its biggest single-day gain ever. The rally came after Samsung reported record first-quarter earnings last week. Operating profit rose more than eight times to 57.2 trillion won, while revenue climbed to a record 133.9 trillion won.
Samsung’s first-quarter operating profit alone was also higher than its total profit for all of 2025. Investor excitement grew even more after Bloomberg reported that Apple had discussions with Samsung and Intel about manufacturing chips for Apple devices in the United States. The move could help Apple reduce its reliance on longtime partner TSMC.
Samsung wasn’t the only company benefiting from the AI boom. Shares of rival chipmaker SK Hynix also jumped more than 10%, helping South Korea’s Kospi index rise over 5% and pass the 7,000 mark for the first time. A major reason behind Samsung’s recent success is the growing demand for high-bandwidth memory chips, also known as HBM chips. These chips are important for artificial intelligence systems because they can process large amounts of data at very high speeds.
Although Samsung lost its early lead in the HBM market to SK Hynix, the company has been working hard to catch up. Earlier this year, Samsung announced it had become the first company to start mass production of HBM4 chips, the newest generation of AI memory technology. These chips are expected to play a major role in powering Nvidia’s future AI systems and advanced data centers.
Analysts say the AI industry’s huge demand for memory chips is creating supply shortages, which is helping companies like Samsung make even bigger profits. Experts also noted that building new semiconductor factories takes years, meaning chip supply could remain tight for some time. That could continue boosting Samsung’s earnings and stock price over the next few years.
Even though SK Hynix still leads the HBM market, analysts say investors are becoming more confident in Samsung’s ability to compete as its latest AI chips continue receiving positive feedback.
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