Worldwide semiconductor revenue in 2024 reached an estimated USD $626 billion, representing an 18.1% increase from the previous year, as reported by Gartner.
This robust growth is forecasted to continue into 2025, with global semiconductor revenue projected to total USD $705 billion. "Graphics processing units (GPUs) and AI processors used in data centre applications (servers and accelerator cards) were the key drivers for the chip sector in 2024," said George Brocklehurst, Vice President Analyst at Gartner. "The rising demand for AI and generative AI (GenAI) workloads led data centres to become the second-largest market for semiconductors in 2024, behind smartphones. Data centre semiconductor revenue totaled USD $112 billion in 2024, up from USD $64.8 billion in 2023."
The semiconductor industry's favourable performance influenced the rankings of several leading vendors. Eleven companies achieved double-digit revenue growth, while only eight out of the top 25 experienced declines in 2024.
Samsung Electronics reclaimed the top position from Intel in 2024, benefitting significantly from a strong rebound in memory device prices. Samsung's semiconductor revenue summed to USD $66.5 billion. In contrast, Intel moved to the second position as growth in its AI PCs and Core Ultra chipset did not fully offset the limited success in its AI accelerator offerings and modest growth in its x86 business. Intel's revenue witnessed a marginal increase of 0.1% to USD $49.2 billion. Nvidia also experienced commendable growth, boosting its revenue by 84% to USD $46 billion, allowing it to ascend to the third spot largely due to the strength of its AI business.
Memory maintained its prominence within the semiconductor market in 2024, accounting for 71.8% of revenue growth. The sector's share of total semiconductor sales rose to 25.2%. DRAM revenue improved by 75.4%, with NAND revenue increasing by 75.7%. High-bandwidth memory (HBM) production played a vital role, representing 13.6% of total DRAM revenue in 2024.
"Memory and AI semiconductors will drive near-term growth, with HBM projected to account for an increasing share of DRAM revenue, reaching 19.2% in 2025," noted Brocklehurst. "HBM revenue is estimated to increase 66.3% in 2025, reaching USD $19.8 billion."
The report, "Market Share Analysis: Semiconductors, Worldwide, 2024 (Preliminary)," is accessible to Gartner clients and provides further insights into the semiconductor market's dynamic landscape.
