Samsung has claimed the top spot in the semiconductor industry, according to Gartner’s latest report. They reported that global semiconductor revenue reached $626 billion in 2024, a jump of 18.1% from the previous year. George Brocklehurst, a vice president at Gartner, explained that the surge in AI and generative AI demand pushed data centers to become the second-largest market for semiconductors, following smartphones.
Samsung led the pack with approximately $66.5 billion in revenue, pushing Intel to second place at $49.2 billion. Here’s how the top five vendors stacked up:
1. Samsung: $66.5 billion
2. Intel: $49.2 billion
3. NVIDIA: $46 billion
4. SK hynix: $42.8 billion
5. Qualcomm: $32.4 billion
Samsung benefitted from a recovery in memory prices, overtaking Intel. NVIDIA made significant strides, moving up two spots, largely due to its strong performance in the AI sector. Despite efforts in AI and its new Core Ultra chipset, Intel saw only marginal growth of 0.1% in semiconductor revenue. Meanwhile, NVIDIA’s robust AI business powered its ascent in the rankings.
Brocklehurst highlighted that GPUs and AI processors were the main drivers behind the chip industry’s growth in 2024. Revenue from data center semiconductors skyrocketed to $112 billion, up from $64.8 billion in 2023.
Memory products are also thriving, with a whopping 71.8% growth in revenue this year. High-bandwidth memory (HBM) played a key role in this surge, contributing significantly to revenue for DRAM manufacturers, who experienced a 75.4% increase overall. Non-memory revenue, which makes up the majority of the market, grew by 6.9%.
Looking ahead, Gartner forecasts a continuing upward trend for the semiconductor sector, predicting $705 billion in revenue for 2025. According to Brocklehurst, memory and AI semiconductors will drive this growth, especially with HBM revenue expected to increase its share of the total DRAM market.
