South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol announced on Tuesday that South Korea will be investing 9.4 trillion won ($6.94 billion) in artificial intelligence by 2027 to maintain its leadership in cutting-edge semiconductor chips. This announcement also includes a separate 1.4 trillion won fund to support AI semiconductor firms. The move comes as South Korea seeks to keep up with other countries such as the United States, China, and Japan who are also investing heavily in their semiconductor supply chains.
Semiconductors are a crucial foundation of South Korea’s export-driven economy. In March, chip exports reached their highest in 21 months at $11.7 billion, accounting for almost a fifth of total exports shipped by Asia’s fourth-largest economy. Yoon addressed a gathering of policymakers and chip industry executives on Tuesday, stating that “Current competition in semiconductors is an industrial war and an all-out war between nations.”
South Korea plans to expand research and development in AI chips such as artificial neural processing units (NPUs) and next-generation high-bandwidth memory chips by earmarking investments and a fund. The government also intends to promote the development of next-generation artificial general intelligence (AGI) and safety technologies that go beyond existing models. Yoon has set an ambitious target for South Korea to become one of the top three countries in AI technology, including chips, and to take a 10% or more share of the global system semiconductor market by 2030. “Just as we have dominated the world with memory chips for the past 30 years, we will write a new semiconductor myth with AI chips in the next 30 years,” Yoon said.
Despite the recent earthquake in Taiwan, which is a global leader in semiconductors, Yoon said that the impact on South Korean companies has been limited so far. However, he ordered thorough preparation in the event of uncertainties. ($1 = 1,355.1200 won)