Lee Jae-yong maps Korea chip push, picks Gwangju candidate and boosts HBM in Chungcheong - CHOSUNBIZ - Chosunbiz

Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong announced at the National Briefing on Korea's Three Mega Projects that Gwangju is being considered as a candidate site for a semiconductor production complex,... Read original →

Lee Jae-yong’s bet on HBM and regional clustering is a survival play amid the AI chip arms race. Technically, concentrating HBM fabs in Chungcheong will accelerate local adoption of TSV and hybrid bonding, forcing suppliers like Samsung Electro-Mechanics to upgrade co-development capabilities—yet over-indexing on HBM may starve logic node investments. On compliance, reliance on state-backed 'mega projects' lowers capex burdens but heightens policy risk; a post-election shift in Seoul could void regional subsidies. TSMC (Taiwan, China) will likely accelerate CoWoS capacity and deepen client lock-in via its Arizona fab, while SK hynix may be compelled to follow Samsung into Chungcheong to retain ecosystem relevance. Over the next 18 months, Korea’s semiconductor sector will exhibit 'HBM-led breakthroughs with systemic strain'—any delay in Gwangju’s fab launch risks missing the AI server demand peak.