Samsung Might Pull Ahead of NVIDIA in Earnings in 2027

Samsung may be on the verge of a breakout year, thanks largely to booming demand for memory chips powering the AI surge. The company’s earnings for the first quarter of 2026 suggest its operating profit could reach nearly $42 billion. So how much is that for Samsung? It’s about 755% higher than the same period last year.

Samsung is already making a lot of money

In other words, Samsung likely made more in one quarter than it did in all of 2025. That shows how fast the memory market has turned in its favor. After a weak period, demand and prices have come back quickly. Samsung’s size and ability to scale production have helped it take advantage of this rebound and turn it into strong profits.

At the center of this is high bandwidth memory, or HBM, which is key for AI workloads. As cloud companies and hyperscalers build more data centers, they need faster and more efficient memory. Samsung, one of the largest memory makers, is benefiting directly. Its focus on advanced memory is paying off as AI demand keeps growing.

Samsung could make $329 billion, with NVIDIA close behind at $327 million

Industry analysts say the current memory upcycle isn’t over yet. Many think it’s only halfway through, with prices likely to keep rising as supply stays tight and demand grows. Big tech companies like Amazon, Microsoft, and Google are still spending heavily on AI infrastructure, which keeps pressure on memory supply and pushes prices higher.

KB Securities (via Jukan) estimates Samsung could post 488 trillion won, or about $329 billion, in operating profit by 2027. If that happens, Samsung could even surpass NVIDIA in operating profit, despite having a much lower market value. That gap shows how strong Samsung’s earnings could get if the memory boom continues.