Kim Ki-nam, Vice Chairman of Samsung Electronics, "We will narrow the gap with TSMC through leading-edge process competitiveness"

Kim Ki-nam, Vice Chairman and CEO of Samsung Electronics, is speaking at the 52nd Samsung Electronics Annual General Meeting held on the 17th at the Suwon Convention Center in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Suwon=Asia Economy reporters Woo Su-yeon and Jung Hyun-jin] Kim Ki-nam, Vice Chairman and CEO of Samsung Electronics, expressed confidence that "there is no lack of competitiveness in advanced process technology" in the semiconductor foundry sector and stated that based on this, they will work to narrow the gap with Taiwan's TSMC, the global foundry industry leader. Kim emphasized his commitment to solidifying Samsung's dominance in the semiconductor market.

At Samsung Electronics' 52nd Annual General Meeting held on the 17th at the Suwon Convention Center in Gyeonggi Province, Kim responded to a shareholder's question about when Samsung aims to achieve the number one foundry market share by saying, "To successfully nurture the foundry business, achieving economies of scale is important," adding, "And to achieve economies of scale, securing many large customers is key." He continued, "From the perspective of large customers, the two most important factors are advanced process competitiveness and stable supply capability," while acknowledging, "Although Samsung has not been in the foundry business for long, it is true that compared to leading companies, our market share and purchasing competitive capacity are lacking."

However, Kim emphasized, "There is no lack of competitiveness in advanced process technology. The capacity, which can be considered a lacking economy of scale, will be prepared in a timely manner through efficient investment," and added, "Through this, we will gradually reduce the gap in competition." Although Kim did not directly mention TSMC, considering Samsung Electronics' business report stating that "in advanced processes, we are competing in a duopoly with TSMC," his remarks are interpreted in that context. TSMC announced plans to invest $28 billion this year, and Samsung Electronics is also expected to actively invest.

Regarding a shareholder's comment that the technological gap with competitors in memory semiconductors is narrowing, Kim stated, "Our company holds overwhelming technological competitiveness in memory," emphasizing leadership in DRAM, NAND flash, and solution technologies. He added, "It is necessary to supply optimized products to customers in a timely manner, and we have competitiveness over other companies," and said, "Going forward, we will continue to expand our technological superiority through ongoing R&D, while strengthening our position as industry leader by continuously supplying high-quality differentiated products closely tailored to customers."

When asked about the strategy for the non-memory (system) semiconductor business, Kim explained, "Although our scale is still smaller compared to leading companies, if you look into the details, the potential is outstanding," adding, "We have maintained the number one position in Display Driver ICs (DDI) since 2002, lead the world with the first development of 0.7μm (micrometer) or smaller fine pixels in camera sensors, and are strengthening technological leadership through commercialization of 5G in System on Chip (SoC) products."

Kim forecasted that while uncertainties such as the US-China conflict and currency depreciation will continue this year, economic growth is expected to improve, predicting a year where crisis and opportunity coexist. He stated, "As digital technology spreads across industries, it is expected to lead to expanded demand for various semiconductors, which are the foundation of digital technology," and added, "In memory, we will focus on expanding the technological gap in advanced processes, while securing leadership through product differentiation aimed at capturing high-growth markets such as data centers and HPC."

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