Hynix boldly plans to topple Intel, AMD within a decade
By Joshua Topolsky 
posted Jul 26th 2007 4:09AM
posted Jul 26th 2007 4:09AM
In a fairly tame show of initiative, Hynix, a South Korean company you've probably never heard of, has announced its plan to become the world's leading chip producer over the next ten years. The company, currently the world's fifth largest memory chipmaker, claims it will boost sales from last year's $7.7 billion to $18 billion in 2010 (the year we make contact), and to $25 billion by 2012 (when the Mayan calendar ends and we're all supposed to eat it). Hynix plans to gain ground by eagerly developing new technologies, and with the introduction of a new type of memory chip called Phase-change Random Access Memory (PRAM, but not of Apple fame). Analysts say PRAM will become the industry's main memory source, replacing flash storage over the next decade. Meanwhile, architects in Korea are working feverishly to design a room in the new Hynix headquarters large enough for president Jong-Kap Kim's head.
"Meanwhile, architects in Korea are working feverishly to design a room in the new Hynix headquarters large enough for president Jong-Kap Kim's head."
What tha? Spoken by a true teenage drop-out. Heaps of people make claims like this all the time, there's not need to say things such as that.
Why are you here?
I lived in Korea for 2 years and currently married to one, and it is true some Koreans just have huge noggins. Honestly, his really isn't that big compared to some of the ones I've seen. Hey, they joke about it too. 짱구머리 (JJang gu meo ri) is a popular little comic that means "big head" but in a fun slang way.
cool story hansel
"Meanwhile, architects in Korea are working feverishly to design a room in the new Hynix headquarters large enough for president Jong-Kap Kim's head."
Don´t slag him off for having some ambition. The guy has probably already accomplished more than the Engadget guy who wrote this drivel...
It's not hard to believe, Samsung seems to be doing a good job, so is LG, also Hyundai seems to be picking up. As much as i hate to admit it, the Japanese companies are beginning show signs slacking in leading technologies. Well except for Toyota and Honda, but most of the electronic companies seem to be.
Uhm... they're Korean
Reread his comment. I think he knows they are Korean.
his big head made him president. don't hate.
Hynix?, PRAM?, These people claim to be able to come up with innovative technology while at the same time using these age-old looking deja-vu company and product names? If that continues, their marketing will probably suck and may lose loads of dough, unless they put some small talking animals or women in bikini in their ads or advertise in "The Echonomist".
Rubbish. No one cares what the company producing the memory in their devices is called, and few people care what the memory itself is called. In fact, most people don't know that the memory or the company exists. This is not a company that needs to be worried about marketing to the consumer.
ROFL!
Improbable. Yes.
Impossible. No.
Never heard of? About one of the biggest semiconductor companies (Last year, bigger revenue than e.g. AMD...)? Please. If YOU don't know nothing about something doesn't mean no one else does.
And please, Josh, drop the bad "jokes" at the end of every post you make. Not everything has to end into some "snappy" and "clever" "joke"...
Don't hate on Engadget, the guy may very well become the next big thing, but either way - this article was funny and it made me laugh.
"On monuments where the full date is shown, the end of creation is said to be October 21, 4772 AD. According to the Maya there will be a baktun ending in 2012, a significant event being the end of the 13th 400 year period, but not the end of the world."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesoamerican_Long_Count_calendar
I'll hazard that I can safely speak for Joshua when I say... "whatever."
teel, take a second to review your last post:
Never heard of? About one of the biggest semiconductor companies (Last year, bigger revenue than e.g. AMD...)? Please. If YOU don't know nothing about something doesn't mean no one else does.
And please, Josh, drop the bad "jokes" at the end of every post you make. Not everything has to end into some "snappy" and "clever" "joke"...
-see anything, um, contradictory between the first and second stanza?
You bash the author of this article for (what you think is) assuming that everyone may not know who Hynix is (even though he DID use the probable word probably aptly), yet you then follow up your clever little quip basher assuming yourself that not everyone likes a cynical or sarcastic snappy little joke at the end of their geek news. I'd have to say that Engadget is doing well for themselves due to the snappy little jokes, the clever puns and the cynical slant they put into their articles, and frankly I quite enjoy a techno-junkie with a sense of humor and the balls to put it in a national publication.
Besides, the best pun is a pun that makes you go 'ugggghhhhhhhhhhh, that's bad!'
Wouldn't some agree? Or is that too much of an assumption?
Maybe I should just leave everyone out of it and say that I agree with myself. I am a Gemini after all, so it's legal.
Keep it up Josh, you can't please everyone. And everyone DOES know that, even teel.
It was funny and you guys should start relaxing! In ten years when Hynix takes over the world, then Engadget will give credit where credit is due.
Josh and the other spend a lot of time, giving us awesome news with good humor, just to be shot down with?... :/
Hynix have been doing good business for years. It's certainly a long crap-shoot, but by no means impossible they could hit the afterburners now.
I am going to choose to believe that Topolsky is referring to the real-world head to body size ratio this man touts.
Teels's use of a double negative pains me and dilutes any intellectual credibility his or her post. All I can see is "If YOU don't know nothing." This sort of thing is becoming an epidemic.
As Han Solo said to Luke Skywalker. "Easy kid, don't get cocky." The Koreans are very capable when it comes to business but ten years is a long way off. If Intel starts manufacturing photonic processors, they'd really be hard to beat.
Agreed - still, may as well "aim high," eh?
Tukes, I couldn't have said it any less non-accurately.
hehe
God people, get a freaking sence of humor.
I hope he's right... better tech, more competition... all good things...
The Koreans are notorious for sacrificing profit margins in order to increase volume. I wouldn't be surprised if they became solid players (with a little Korean government backing). They would happily sacrifice margins and kill Intel and AMD on price (and parity in quality).
In response to some comments: marketing won't be an issue either, look at Hyundai..
Funniest CEO pic ever.
The competition that he is referring to is not Intel and AMD. Hynix manufactures memory modules; they are in direct competition with companies like Micron and Samsung, not CPU manufacturers. It's surprising that you've never heard of them, they are one of the largest memory manufacturers (parent company Hyundai) globally, and have been in numerous ATI vid cards (and perhaps Nvidia too). All of that not withstanding he does sound like he has a bit of a big head:)
This is interesting that he his saying something like this when Intel, Smasung, Qimonda, STMicroelectronics and others have already announced intentions or have begun sampling the technology already.
Curious that no one came up with a quip comment on the "and i'm the lawnmower".
Best post in the past month, with the exception of the inews.
The chip market is not only "premium chips" like CPU such Athlon, Pentium and such, there are a lot more low profile chips in your pc for example Texas Instrument, Samsung Electronics, Toshiba and such.
The difference is that "high profile" chips give a nice profit margin, while cheapest chip give a marginal margin.
Huyndai changed their chip making division to Hynix a few yrs ago.
Confucius say:
if u want to play with the big boys, continue to price-fix and anti-competitively compete with the big boys.
Intel has successfully hold down AMD at the numero dos spot for years. What makes this guy think his company can be number one? by using the old dumping practices Asians are so famous for? I don't think so. Intel boys will find a way to "help" Hynix just like they have AMD for years...