A former SK Hynix employee has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for leaking semiconductor manufacturing technology to a Chinese company, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported on Sunday.

The global memory chip industry is heading for its most severe supply shortage in 2027, according to SK Hynix Chief Executive Kwak Noh-jung.

SK Hynix has overtaken Samsung Electronics to become South Korea’s most valuable listed company, capping a remarkable turnaround for a chipmaker that was once on the brink of collapse and showcasing the transformative impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on the global semiconductor industry.