‘No time to explain, get in’: Samsung Electronics, SK hynix power KOSPI rally as AI memes spread online

Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong, left, and SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won are seen in images from an artificial intelligence-generated meme. The caption reads, “No time to explain, get in!” Captured from online community

As Korea’s stock market races to record highs, the country’s retail investors are responding with humor — and artificial intelligence (AI).

This week, social media platforms have been flooded with AI-generated images depicting Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong and SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won as action movie heroes beckoning investors to join the rally.

In one widely shared image, the two men extend a hand from the door of a sports car against a chaotic, war zone backdrop, with the caption, “No time to explain, get in!” The implication is clear — hesitate and you risk missing the rally.

An internet meme celebrating the sharp rise in Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix shares, referencing “200,000 won Samsung” and “1 million won hynix.” Captured from online community

Other memes feature mock 200,000 won and 1 million won banknotes bearing the executives’ faces — a nod to the soaring share prices of Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, which have helped propel the benchmark KOSPI index beyond 6,300 this week.

Samsung Electronics and SK hynix closed at record 218,000 won and 1,099,000 won, respectively, on Thursday.

The KOSPI rose 223.41 points, or 3.67 percent, to close at 6,307.27, extending gains after surpassing the 6,000 mark for the first time a day earlier.

Online forums swung between euphoria and caution, with posts celebrating fresh highs alongside warnings that the rapid climb may signal overheating.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.