Lee Jae-yong Meets IT and Political Figures in the US... "Let's Achieve It Before Anyone Else"

After Samsung Ho-Am Prize Ceremony on 31st Last Month, Departure to the US
Meeting with Verizon CEO on the 4th
Two-Week Schedule Covering Both East and West Coasts

Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong has embarked on a roughly two-week business trip to the United States to strengthen cooperation with key clients and explore new growth engines.

In November 2021, Lee Jae-yong, then Vice Chairman of Samsung Electronics, visited Verizon headquarters and took a commemorative photo with CEO Hans Vestberg. Photo by Samsung Electronics

According to Samsung Electronics on the 6th, Chairman Lee departed for the U.S. immediately after attending the Samsung Ho-Am Prize award ceremony held at the Shilla Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the 31st of last month.

On the 4th (local time), Chairman Lee met with Hans Vestberg, CEO of major U.S. telecom company Verizon, in New York to discuss overall business matters including technology and service plans utilizing artificial intelligence (AI), prospects for next-generation communication technologies, and strategies to enhance customer value through technological innovation.

They also discussed expanding the Android ecosystem for Verizon customers, sales plans for new Galaxy products in the second half of this year, joint promotions for Galaxy new products, and ways to experience AI features of new Galaxy models within Verizon stores. Samsung Electronics’ Mobile Experience (MX) Division head No Tae-moon, Network Division head Kim Woo-jun, and North America President Choi Kyung-sik also attended the meeting.

After the meeting, Chairman Lee said, "Let us excel at businesses everyone is doing better than anyone else, and be the first to succeed in businesses no one else can."

Chairman Lee and CEO Vestberg first connected in 2010 when they attended the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Spain as Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman and Ericsson Chairman, respectively. Their friendship has continued since Vestberg moved to Verizon, maintaining a close partnership as business collaborators.

Verizon is a global major telecom operator and also Samsung Electronics’ largest business partner. The two companies collaborate across Galaxy smartphones, tablets, wearable devices, and network equipment. In 2020, they signed a long-term supply contract worth 7.9 trillion won for network equipment including 5G. This was the largest single export contract in the history of Korea’s telecommunications equipment industry, marking Samsung’s entry into the U.S. 5G market.

Earlier this year, Samsung Electronics launched the Galaxy S24, the world’s first AI smartphone. The global telecommunications industry expects AI to drive the development of the telecom sector over the next decade, focusing attention on Samsung’s Galaxy AI.

Chairman Lee plans to cover a packed schedule of about 30 meetings across the continent, from the East Coast’s New York to the West Coast’s Silicon Valley, until mid-month.

During the trip, he will inspect local operations and meet consecutively with CEOs of major IT, AI, semiconductor, and telecommunications companies, as well as political and governmental figures related to Samsung’s future businesses. During his U.S. trips to the East and West Coasts last year, Chairman Lee met with over 20 CEOs of major global companies, including Jensen Huang of NVIDIA and Elon Musk of Tesla.

This trip draws particular attention as it takes place ahead of the 31st anniversary of the late Lee Kun-hee’s “New Management Declaration” on the 7th, amid rising concerns within Samsung. It is interpreted as a move to overcome challenges and seek new opportunities by leveraging global networks.

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