Samsung Electronics commenced a two-day global strategy meeting on June 26 to discuss its semiconductor business for the latter half of the year. This meeting marks the first presided over by Jun Young-hyun, the newly appointed Head of Device Solutions (DS) Division (Vice Chairman), who was brought in as a relief pitcher for the semiconductor business last month.
Jun and key executives evaluated various segments, including memory, foundry, and design, and they formulated tailored strategies for each customer for the upcoming months. A significant focus was securing Nvidia’s verification for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and enhancing foundry competitiveness to close the gap with industry rival TSMC.
The meeting, held at Samsung Electronics’ Hwaseong Campus, saw the attendance of notable figures such as Lee Jung-bae, President of the Memory Business; Choi Si-young, President of the Foundry Business; Park Yong-in, President of the System LSI Business; and heads of overseas subsidiaries. The first day was marked by introspection on Samsung’s slipping market position, even in its stronghold, the memory business.
Discussions on the memory division were heavily centered around HBM, particularly strategies to pass Nvidia’s quality verification for fifth-generation HBM and address technical challenges associated with the sixth-generation HBM.
“In the month since Vice Chairman Jun assumed the role, he has received detailed reports on the setbacks in the current development plans,” an industry insider revealed. “This meeting is expected to intensively address these issues and establish a new mid-term development plan.”
The agenda also covered the development of new technologies such as 3D D-RAM and Compute Express Link (CXL). Samsung recently pioneered a CXL infrastructure certified by Red Hat, positioning it as a future focus area post-HBM. CXL technology connects Graphics Processing Units (GPU) and Central Processing Units (CPU) with memory in AI semiconductors to enhance computational speed.
In the foundry sector, discussions revolved around the roadmap and yield targets for mass production in the year’s second half. The foundry division aims for a 60% yield on its second-generation 3-nanometer process, scheduled for mass production later this year. This target seeks to match TSMC’s current 3-nanometer process yield of 60-70%, aiming to secure price competitiveness through its proprietary GAA (Gate All Around) process, known for superior data processing speed and power efficiency compared to TSMC’s FinFET technology.
Samsung’s semiconductor division, which faced a loss of 15 trillion won last year, turned a profit in the first quarter amid a semiconductor market recovery. Following a first-quarter operating profit of 1.91 trillion won, the company is projected to achieve over 4 trillion won in the second quarter. Despite plans to mass-produce fifth-generation HBM in the first half of the year, significant sales have yet to materialize. Analysts suggest passing Nvidia’s verification in the third quarter could significantly boost earnings growth.
