South Korea’s Lee announces $34B Samsung investment plan for advanced chip packaging

Nvidia's co-founder Jensen Huang resigned, raising concerns about future demand for Korean chipmakers SK hynix and Samsung Electronics. Both companies rely heavily on Nvidia for HBM chip sales, with SK hynix reporting 13.35% of its revenue from a single customer (likely Nvidia). Long-term supply agreements are expected to remain intact, but future demand is uncertain. Analysts suggest AMD, Broadcom, and Marvell could benefit if U.S. export controls impact Nvidia.

Samsung Electronics launched 'Intelligent Eyewear' in collaboration with Google, Gentleman Monster, and Warby Parker. The AI-powered glasses, priced between 650,000 and 700,000 won, feature a 12MP camera, Gemini AI analysis, and voice-centered design. They will be available in Korea and the U.S. on October 10.

Samsung Electronics, led by Jay Y. Lee, began construction on a $900m plant for AI memory chips, raising its investment in South Korea's Chungcheong region to $107b. The plant will package HBM chips, crucial for AI servers, addressing a supply bottleneck. Samsung aims to compete with SK Hynix in the HBM market, with recent shipments to Nvidia.

Nvidia Corp. participated in a $668M funding round for GMI Cloud with South Korean investors. Samsung began mass production of Nvidia's Groq 3 LPX inference chip. LG plans to unveil a humanoid robot in Q1 2027 with Nvidia's support. Nvidia will invest $1B in Naver for a 4.5% stake. Samsung is developing an AI accelerator chip to compete with Nvidia and Qualcomm. Nvidia's CEO expressed interest in investing in South Korea's robotics and AI sectors.

Samsung Electronics and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung initiated a 4.7 quadrillion won ($3.5 trillion) megaproject in the Chungcheong region, focusing on AI and semiconductor development. Samsung plans to invest 46 trillion won in high bandwidth memory (HBM) production lines and 144 trillion won total in the region. The project aims to transform Samsung's Onyang campus into an advanced packaging hub for AI semiconductors, with operations expected to begin by June 2028.

A former Samsung Electronics researcher was indicted for leaking EUV chip technology. The researcher, who worked for 20 years, accessed documents via a shared computer before resigning and transcribed them at a university. The leaked technology is crucial for Samsung's future business, including foundry operations and memory chip manufacturing.