"'Scarce' Automotive Semiconductors, Korea Must Build Ecosystem from Design to Production of Key Dominant Items"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyewon] Amid a global shortage of automotive semiconductors, there is a diagnosis that we need to build an industrial ecosystem centered on fields where we have strengths before technological barriers become higher.

On the 1st, the Korea Automotive Technology Institute stated, "The automotive semiconductor industry is shifting from general-purpose products to customized products, and it is necessary to revitalize the industrial ecosystem based on next-generation items such as application processors (AP) in which domestic companies have potential competitiveness."

Although demand for automotive semiconductors is rapidly increasing due to autonomous driving, powertrain electrification, and the expansion of various electronic components, it is pointed out that the domestic automotive semiconductor-related industrial ecosystem is insufficient.

In fact, as cars evolve into comprehensive IT devices, the number and types of automotive semiconductors installed in vehicles are increasing. Currently, internal combustion engine vehicles use 200 to 300 automotive semiconductors, but it is estimated that Level 3 or higher autonomous vehicles require more than 2,000 semiconductors.

In particular, new demand for automotive semiconductors is expected to be concentrated in high-growth areas such as infotainment, advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS), and power semiconductors for electric powertrains. According to IHS Markit, the total automotive semiconductor market size is expected to grow to $65.5 billion by 2024.

The existing automotive semiconductor market was led by five major companies?NXP, Infineon, Renesas, Texas Instruments (TI), and STMicroelectronics?centered on semiconductors (MCUs) that control electronic systems. However, large electronics and IT companies (such as Nvidia and Samsung Electronics) are penetrating the market through in-house R&D, mergers and acquisitions, and cooperation with semiconductor foundries, focusing on autonomous driving and artificial intelligence (AI) semiconductors.

Lee Ji-hyung, a researcher at the Research Strategy Headquarters of the Korea Automotive Technology Institute, said, "Samsung Electronics is leading the way in newly entering some automotive semiconductor fields such as AP and telematics control units (TCU), but the domestic industrial ecosystem foundation is still weak, and the dependence on overseas companies for finished vehicles is high." He pointed out, "Automotive semiconductors are a large-scale, high value-added industry with thousands of semiconductors per vehicle, so building an ecosystem is essential before technological barriers rise due to global leading companies in semiconductors and AI."

The researcher added, "We need to build an industrial ecosystem from design to production centered on APs and C-V2X chips, where Korea has competitiveness, and also challenge the future core market of autonomous driving AI semiconductors." He also emphasized, "It is necessary to establish a technology testing and certification system in the semiconductor functional safety field, which currently relies heavily on overseas testing and certification."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.