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Kioxia overtakes Toyota to become Japan's most valuable company as AI memory demand reshapes market

Memory chipmaker Kioxia has overtaken Toyota to become Japan's most valuable listed company, driven by AI data-centre demand for high-capacity NAND flash. The stock has rallied strongly since its late-2024 IPO. The move is read as a structural shift in Japan's tech sector hierarchy.

A memory chip wafer in a cleanroom
A memory chip wafer in a cleanroomPhoto: Ludovic Delot / Pexels
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Japanese memory giant Kioxia has overtaken Toyota to become the country's most valuable listed company after a sharp share-price rally. According to Nikkei Asia, demand for high-capacity NAND flash to build AI data centres has pushed the valuation up materially. Kioxia had said its late-2024 IPO marked the end of a long uncertainty period.

The structural tightness in NAND reflects multi-year hyperscaler capex commitments to serve generative-AI workloads. South Korean rivals Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix have announced capital plans of their own to expand memory capacity, while Kioxia has been refining its vertically integrated production model with backing from Bain Capital and Toshiba.

Toyota's drop down the rankings marks the first major Japanese market-cap handover from automakers to electronics manufacturers since the 1990s. Analysts will watch closely how AI infrastructure capex affects NAND pricing in the coming quarters. This article is not investment advice.

TechAIEarningsTM005930.KS000660.KSAsiaNikkei Asia
Source: Nikkei Asia
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This article is an AI-curated summary of the original story published by Nikkei Asia. The illustration is a stock photo by Ludovic Delot from Pexels and is not from the original story.

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