Originally fromThe Wall Street Journal
Compiled by / Odaily Planet Daily Golem(@web 3_golem)
Na Se-bin has completely lost her sense of consumption.
Since January this year, attracted by the global AI boom, she has poured almost her entire life savings (about $47,000) into the stock market, a frenzy that is filling the coffers of tech giants in South Korea, Taiwan, and Japan.
The 24-year-old South Korean programmer says that during sharp market swings, she has made or lost the equivalent of a month's salary in a single second. Despite the huge risks, she can't resist, especially after seeing the stock she holds double in price. South Korea's stock market has been one of the world's best performers over the past 18 months, and Na jokes with her colleagues that they should sell their underwear to buy more stocks.
"Even friends who never touched stocks before are now starting to jump in," Na says. "Everyone is speculating on something."
Na Se-bin, a 24-year-old software developer in Seoul, started investing in January this year and quickly became addicted. (Image credit: Tim Franco for The Wall Street Journal)
Trillions of dollars are pouring into the global construction of AI, which relies on the semiconductors and chip-making technology supplied by a handful of Asian exporters. The surge in global chip demand seems endless, fueling export growth, corporate profits, and wealth for many investors.
Even after recent pullbacks, Taiwan's stock market has still doubled in value over the past year, South Korea's has tripled, and Japan's Nikkei index has risen over 80% in the same period, three times the gain of the S&P 500.
The accelerating demand for AI-related products is stimulating investor enthusiasm and pushing up wages. In Taipei, taxi drivers even trade stocks while driving, and in the job market, the high salaries in the tech industry are enviable. Nowadays, one of the most effective "pick-up lines" in Taiwan is to tell someone you work for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), the world's largest chip foundry and also one of the most generous local employers. Employees in the memory-chip division of South Korea's Samsung Electronics are expecting an average bonus of about $400,000 this year. The company is forecast to generate more profit by 2026 than any global company except Nvidia.
Whether AI services from OpenAI's ChatGPT, Anthropic, and SpaceX can deliver on the promise of commercialization, this part of the tech sector seems destined to benefit. These Asian tech giants, which provide indispensable hardware for the AI industry, are the "shovel sellers" of the AI gold rush.
The four Silicon Valley hyperscale data centers — Microsoft, Meta Platforms, Amazon, and Alphabet's Google — plan to spend up to $670 billion this year on AI-related capital expenditures. This spending far exceeds the inflation-adjusted expenditure of the U.S. railroad expansion in the 1850s and the decades-long construction cost of the U.S. interstate highway system launched a century later.
According to an Allianz Trade report, global exports of AI-related products reached nearly $4 trillion last year, with Asia accounting for two-thirds. These products include semiconductors, data storage servers, and cooling systems.
Market research firm Gartner predicts that direct spending in the AI field (covering services, infrastructure, and software) is expected to reach $2.6 trillion this year, a 47% increase from 2025. Next year, that number is forecast to reach about $3.5 trillion.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang recently concluded an 18-day high-profile visit, participating in a series of events, speeches, and business meetings in Taiwan and South Korea.
In Taipei, convenience stores sell lottery tickets with a top prize of 500 shares of Nvidia stock. Huang announced plans to invest $150 billion annually in Taiwan, which he called the center of the AI revolution. In South Korea, Huang signed cooperation agreements with local companies in robotics, memory chips, and AI.
During Huang's visit to Seoul, the KOSPI index halted trading on June 8 after plunging more than 8%, following a sell-off in U.S. chip stocks (including Nvidia). Huang, wearing his signature leather jacket even in Seoul's summer heat, was unfazed by the stock drop.
"People should be very happy with the current stock prices," he said. "Because now you can buy stocks more cheaply."
Global Top 10 Stock Market Capitalizations in 2026 and the Share of TSMC and SK Hynix in Their Respective Market's Total Capitalization
Na only started trading stocks this year. She estimates that over 80% of her social circle actively invests, as do her colleagues. One colleague, she says, made enough money from stock investments to spend tens of thousands of dollars on an engagement ring.
Now, Na is "extravagant" when it comes to concert tickets, branded clothing, and treating her parents to meals. She planned to buy a gold ring for her mother to celebrate her parents' 30th wedding anniversary, but her mother declined.
"She told me to just give her cash," Na said, "so she could buy stocks."
TSMC, Put on a Pedestal
Ye Lunhao, a 37-year-old insurance agent, invests more than half of his roughly $2,100 monthly salary in local AI and chip-related companies. His investment returns have quadrupled, and he recently bought a $440,000 four-bedroom apartment in Taichung, Taiwan.
For years, his friends steered clear of stock market investing. Now, they all ask him for investment advice.
37-year-old insurance agent Ye Lunhao sits in the lobby of his apartment building in Taichung, Taiwan. Photo by Lin Yifei for The Wall Street Journal
"Without semiconductors, none of this would have happened," Mr. Ye said. "Investing has freed me from mere drudgery and given me a chance to enjoy the beauty of this world."
TSMC is the main driver of Taiwan's stock market surge. According to tech market research firm Counterpoint Research, the company captured over 90% of revenue share in the most advanced chip manufacturing last year. TSMC is the world's seventh-highest valued company, with a market cap exceeding $2.2 trillion, surpassing Tesla and Meta.
The company's stock price has more than doubled in the past year, pushing Taiwan's benchmark index past markets like France, the U.K., and India.
The chipmaker accounts for over 41% of Taiwan's benchmark index. In comparison, the seven tech giants Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, Nvidia, Meta, and Tesla combined account for about one-third of the S&P 500.
TSMC engineers' salaries can be three times the low end of what other companies pay for similar roles. Choc Chiang, co-founder of Taipei recruitment platform WeFer, said some managers poached by TSMC from smaller companies saw salary increases of up to 30%.
Wang Canlong, owner of an upscale liquor store in Zhubei, Taiwan, has supplied TSMC numerous times. He said he once sold a bottle of Napa Valley whiskey to TSMC founder Morris Chang. Now, his store is too small to meet TSMC's demands. "We look up to them," he said. "With awe and respect in our hearts."
Wang Canlong, owner of a liquor store in Zhubei, Taiwan, has sold large quantities of alcohol to TSMC. (Lin Yifei/The Wall Street Journal)
Wang Weiwen earned an engineering degree in Taiwan. Part of his coursework was visiting a TSMC factory where the base salary was about $62,000 a year. He said such a salary level was simply unheard of. "Every household talks about TSMC."
He is now a graduate student at the University of Michigan, and TSMC recruiters have also called him. Wang Weiwen has concerns about the company's heavy workload, but he sees benefits beyond the hefty paycheck. The social status that comes with being a TSMC engineer is highly attractive to Taiwanese parents who are very picky about their daughters' suitors.
Mr. Wang said, "Your opening line can simply be 'You work at TSMC.'"
Products bearing the TSMC logo also command high prices in the secondary market. A rice cooker with the company logo and circuit board motif sells for about $312 on e-commerce platforms, more than four times the price TSMC employees pay. Buyers scramble for TSMC-branded luggage, thermoses, and shoes. Even the envelope for holiday red packets received by TSMC employees can be sold online for nearly $15 each.
A Carnival for Ordinary People
The South Korean market is dominated by two chip giants, Samsung and SK Hynix, which dominate the production of the two main types of memory chips used in AI computing and data storage.
Customers line up outside a Cartier boutique inside the Shinsegae Department Store in Seoul; Samsung Electronics campus. Tim Franco for The Wall Street Journal
Both companies recently surpassed the trillion-dollar market cap mark, accounting for over half of the total market capitalization of South Korea's KOSPI index. KOSPI was the world's best-performing index last year and continues to lead global rankings this year.
Choi Sung-ho, 35, an ordinary elementary school teacher, is another beneficiary of the Korean stock market. Over the past year, his Korean stock portfolio grew nearly fivefold, exceeding $300,000, including investments in ETFs tracking semiconductor stocks. He says he has upgraded his mobile devices and plans to spend six figures on his next car, perhaps a Mercedes S-Class or Tesla Model X.
"Even the kids at my school are saying their parents are happy with stock gains," Choi said.
In the first quarter of this year, South Korean brokerage Toss Securities opened over 180,000 trading accounts for children aged 18 and under. These accounts require parental approval to open and allow children to trade independently. Recently, the company launched a promotion offering $14 in "experience money" to newly opened accounts for high school students.
On YouTube, the "ETF-explaining Bro" channel is one of the emerging "finfluencer" media that offer market advice. Channel owner Park Soo-in says the channel has attracted over 127,000 followers since launching in July last year. "Many people seem to think this rally will continue," she said.
The stock market surge has further boosted an already strong luxury market. The Cartier boutique inside a major Seoul department store is so crowded that part of its "D'Amour" jewelry collection is now only available online.
Lim Chae-hoon, sales manager at a BMW dealership in Seoul, said his customers often mention their profits from the stock market rise. "There are definitely more people with money to spare now," he said.
Lim Chae-hoon, sales manager at a BMW dealership in Seoul, says customers now feel flush with cash. Tim Franco for The Wall Street Journal
In Japan, Toyota Motor held the title of highest-valued company for 22 consecutive years but was surpassed this month by SoftBank Group, which has made huge bets on OpenAI and data centers.
SoftBank's reign didn't last long. Last Friday, a little-known memory chip maker, Kioxia, jumped to the top spot. A year ago, Kioxia's stock was around $14; now it's about $600. Kioxia's success has sparked investor hunting for the next potential stock market blockbuster.
Even Japan's luxury bathroom fixture maker TOTO is profiting from the AI boom. Its high-tech ceramics are used to hold silicon wafers still while circuits are etched. The company's stock has more than doubled.
Another company, Ajinomoto, uses a byproduct from its world-famous umami seasoning to make insulating films for AI chips. Its stock is up 50%.
Ryoki Nao, a 21-year-old top student in semiconductor engineering at a university in Kumamoto, Japan, says his classmates are investing, but he isn't. While he follows market trends, he plans to graduate, find a job, and then consider investing.
"I want to wait until I can earn a decent income before investing," he said, but the stock market frenzy might not wait for him.
