'DRAM Number 3' Micron Begins Talent Recruitment in Korea

Domestic Memory Sector Engineer Recruitment Underway... Interest Also in EUV Domestic Experts
Micron Chasing Leading Memory Semiconductor Players, Possibility of Establishing a 216 Trillion Won Factory in the US

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Pyeonghwa] Micron Technology, a major US memory semiconductor company and the world's third-largest DRAM market player, is accelerating efforts to secure competitiveness by recruiting talent in South Korea, the country with the largest share in the memory market.

According to the semiconductor industry on the 30th, Micron recently began hiring domestic personnel through its recruitment website and global job platforms such as LinkedIn and Indeed. The position is for a senior application (app) engineer in the mobile memory field based in Seoul.

Micron explained that the role involves supporting and designing DRAM, embedded multimedia card (eMMC), and universal flash storage (UFS) technologies for mobile sector clients. It also described the position as responsible for providing technical support across all business stages, including product sales and distribution.

Micron also appears to be seeking to recruit domestic experts related to extreme ultraviolet (EUV) processes in South Korea. EUV is a next-generation lithography technology used in core semiconductor processes. Since EUV equipment can enhance fine processing, companies like Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are actively increasing its adoption.

The semiconductor industry interprets Micron's domestic talent acquisition as an effort to secure competitiveness in a market where South Korea accounts for 59% of the global memory semiconductor market. It is analyzed that Micron, which has been relatively slow in adopting EUV equipment, has chosen the most active business base to quickly improve its technological capabilities.

An industry insider said, "Since the domestic market is not as large as China or other regions and most domestic semiconductor products are exported, it does not seem that engineers are being hired to immediately expand business significantly," adding, "Because memory semiconductors are the main focus in Korea, this may be to monitor and respond to consumer and corporate trends."

In fact, Micron is rapidly catching up with domestic players in the DRAM and NAND flash markets, which are major memory semiconductor products. According to market research firm TrendForce, Micron ranked third in the global DRAM market in the second quarter with a 24.5% share, following Samsung Electronics (43.5%) and SK Hynix (27.4%). It is evaluated that Micron is narrowing the gap with SK Hynix by increasing its market share compared to the previous quarter.

To strengthen competitiveness, Micron also announced plans this month to invest $40 billion (53.88 trillion KRW) in the US to establish a local factory. Recently, there has also been speculation about a possible new factory investment plan worth $160 billion (215.52 trillion KRW).

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