Ministries forge team for next-gen semiconductors

The Ministry of Science and ICT and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy launched a government-industry team on Thursday dedicated to developing next-generation semiconductors.

The government will inject a total of 1 trillion won ($842.4 million) by 2029, starting this year. The ICT Ministry will provide 488 billion won and the Trade Industry will give 521 billion won.

Those joining the state-led team this year include 103 local businesses, 32 universities and 12 research institutions. Samsung Electronics, SK hynix, DB HiTek, SK Telecom, Hanwha Techwin and Hyundai Mobis are among the participants.

The government said the state-led team would carry out 82 projects this year, dedicated to developing new semiconductors that can be used in different fields.

SK Telecom, together with startup Furiosa AI, will develop semiconductors with neural processing unit capabilities, which can be used in cloud services and data centers.

Hyundai Mobis will work with semiconductor design solution provider Gaonchips and fabless firm Telechips to develop artificial intelligence-powered semiconductors for self-driving vehicles.

Hanwha Techwin will work with fabless firm Nextchip on semiconductors for security cameras and other Internet of Things products.

Energy company Samchully will cooperate with semiconductor firms to develop semiconductors for products that can monitor gas leaks and other potential energy infrastructure risks.

(ws@heraldcorp.com)