Samsung chip workers defecting to SK Hynix amid bonus disparity and AI chip demand surge

Samsung Electronics is experiencing a wave of defections among its chip engineers to rival SK Hynix, driven by a stark disparity in profit-based bonuses tied to the AI chip boom. Engineers at Samsung report feeling demoralized after learning that SK Hynix employees are set to receive $476,000 this year—mostly in cash—while Samsung’s foundry division employees received about $135,000 and memory division employees received roughly $400,000. The bonuses at SK Hynix are funded by record profits from manufacturing high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips, which power AI accelerators such as those from Nvidia.

The financial incentives are reshaping career decisions. One engineer, identified only by his last name Lee, said his team lead encouraged the entire team to apply to SK Hynix. Lee, who has worked at Samsung for three years, applied for an entry-level position at SK Hynix but was rejected; he and a coworker with eight years of experience are now hoping for callbacks for a more experienced role. According to an internal survey by the Samsung labor union in June, 81.5% of employees in the foundry division and nearly half of employees in the semiconductor division overall expressed intent to leave within two years.

The exodus is accelerating despite Samsung’s efforts to retain talent. In May, Samsung reached a deal with its labor union to pay out 10.5% of the semiconductor division’s operating profits to employees annually for 10 years, primarily in company stock that vests over three years. This followed SK Hynix’s agreement last year to pay out 10% of operating profits to employees, translating to the $476,000 figure for 2026. Samsung’s bonuses are further constrained by division-specific performance, with foundry division losses limiting payouts for logic chip engineers like Lee.

SK Hynix has been aggressively expanding its workforce and capacity to capitalize on surging HBM demand. The company hired 2,152 employees in the first half of 2026 and aims to double its manufacturing capacity within five years. Samsung, in contrast, plans to hire 60,000 employees over the next five years, particularly for its semiconductor division. However, industry projections indicate a persistent shortfall: South Korea’s semiconductor sector will require about 304,000 workers by 2031, facing a shortage of roughly 54,000, according to the Korea Semiconductor Industry Association.

The talent shift is also influencing technical collaboration. Samsung is the only major memory maker with an in-house foundry business, enabling it to manufacture the logic chips required for advanced HBM stacks like HBM4 internally. SK Hynix, which historically focused only on memory, is now hiring foundry engineers and outsourcing logic chip production to TSMC. Analysts warn that continued attrition from Samsung’s foundry division could disrupt the integration between memory and foundry teams, potentially weakening Samsung’s competitive edge in HBM development.

Legal battles are emerging as companies seek to protect proprietary technology. In July, Samsung secured a court injunction barring two former employees from working at SK Hynix for 18 months, arguing that semiconductor technology qualifies as a national core technology. The ruling reflects the intensifying stakes as the AI chip market expands and companies vie for technical leadership.