SK hynix appoints two co-CEOs at NAND subsidiary Solidigm

The Chief Business Officer of Solidigm and President at SK hynix Noh Jong-won [Courtesy of SK hynix]

South Korea’s SK hynix Inc., the world’s second-largest memory chipmaker, announced on Tuesday the appointment of two new co-chief executive officers at its U.S.-based subsidiary, Solidigm. The move aims to enhance synergies between the two companies during a challenging period for the chip industry. The new CEOs are Noh Jong-won, the chief business officer of Solidigm and president at SK hynix, and David M. Dixon, the senior vice president and general manager of Solidigm’s data center storage group. The decision was made during a board meeting on May 11 in California.

Kwak Noh-jung, the president and chief safety, product, and production officer at SK hynix, had been temporarily filling the CEO position since the departure of former Solidigm CEO Rob Crooke in October last year. Solidigm’s board of directors had been actively searching for a new CEO since then, and after careful consideration, Noh and Dixon were deemed the most qualified candidates. Noh has demonstrated exceptional leadership in business strategy establishment and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) during his tenure at SK telecom and SK hynix. Since joining Solidigm as the chief business officer in late 2022, he has played a pivotal role in exploring new business opportunities and nurturing stronger relationships with partners.

David M. Dixon, the senior vice president and general manager of Solidigm’s data center storage group [Courtesy of SK hynix]

Dixon brings a wealth of experience from his 28 years at Intel Corp., where he specialized in enterprise solid-state drives (SSDs). As the head of Solidigm’s data center group, he has been instrumental in developing SSD strategies and planning innovative products. The combination of Noh’s expertise in business optimization and Dixon’s deep understanding of the data center SSD market positions them well to lead Solidigm into the future, SK hynix said.

SK Hynix established Solidigm as an SSD subsidiary in San Jose following its acquisition of Intel’s NAND Flash business for 10.3 trillion won ($7.71 billion) in 2020. The acquisition aimed to strengthen SK hynix’s relatively weak NAND flash business. However, Solidigm has faced challenges and incurred losses due to the deteriorating conditions in the chip market.

SK hynix expressed its commitment to optimizing the operations of both companies, seeking to create synergies and foster strong partnerships.