Samsung reaches $1 trillion valuation as AI chip demand surges, becoming second Asian company to cross threshold after TSMC.

Samsung's stock surged more than 10% on Wednesday, reaching a $1 trillion valuation. The milestone comes after the company posted profits eight times higher than the same period a year ago in a recent earnings report.

High-bandwidth memory (HBM)—a type of chip critical to running AI systems—has dramatically improved Samsung's profit margins. The company, along with SK Hynix and Micron, is redirecting investment from consumer chip businesses to ramp up HBM production, which carries substantially higher margins.

Reports emerged that Apple has been in talks with both Samsung and Intel to manufacture chips for Apple devices on U.S. soil, a potential shift from Apple's long reliance on TSMC in Taiwan. Workers at Samsung are threatening an 18-day strike later this month, demanding a larger share of AI-driven profits.