South Korea has announced a $576 billion semiconductor and AI investment plan, backed by Samsung and SK Hynix, to strengthen its global chip leadership.
South Korea has announced a massive 800 trillion won ($576 billion) investment plan to develop its semiconductor and AI ecosystem, with major support from Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, Reuters reported.
President Lee Jae Myung said the initiative aims to improve South Korea’s leadership in chips and AI through large-scale manufacturing and infrastructure expansion over the coming years.
“We must secure the core elements of AI faster than any other country,” Lee said. “Semiconductors, physical AI, and AI data centres are the triple axis for our leap forward.”
Samsung and SK Hynix will invest with suppliers to build two new chip fabrication plants each in South Korea’s southwest region. Local governments in Gwangju and South Jeolla are also expected to contribute 5–20 trillion won, while another 81 trillion won is planned for a chip packaging cluster near Seoul.
The plan also aims to reduce dependence on the Seoul metropolitan area by expanding production to new regions.
South Korea’s industry minister said the country plans to double DRAM output within five years by accelerating semiconductor infrastructure development.
Industry experts, however, have flagged challenges including power supply, water availability and skilled labour needed to support large-scale chip expansion.
