[Chip Talk] The Key Figures Behind Korea's D-RAM Success... From 1st to 3rd Generation

From Kim Kwang-ho to Kim Ki-nam... Key Figures of Samsung Electronics DS Division's DRAM Business Unit

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Yeju] It is no exaggeration to say that the key figures in the history of Korean DRAM are the main players of Samsung Electronics' DS Division DRAM Business Unit. Based on the foresight of the late Chairman Lee Byung-chul and the late Chairman Lee Kun-hee, there were individuals who strived to elevate Korea's semiconductor status at critical moments. They became global leaders not only by participating in the technology development process but also through major decision-making.

◆ Kim Kwang-ho and Lee Yoon-woo... The first-generation executives who laid the foundation of DRAM = "Bring a comprehensive review of the existing semiconductor business and thorough market research and feasibility analysis covering the entire semiconductor sector."

In September 1982, under the directive of the late Chairman Lee Byung-chul, the Semiconductor Business Division became the most important and busiest division within Samsung Group. The project leader was then Semiconductor Business Headquarters Director Kim Kwang-ho (former Vice Chairman Kim Kwang-ho).

After joining the semiconductor business in 1979, former Vice Chairman Kim provided various advice to Chairman Lee Byung-chul and Chairman Lee Kun-hee. Recognized for pioneering the uncharted territory, he rose to the position of Vice Chairman. Their first task was to acquire the latest semiconductor information through overseas branches. At the same time, they reviewed the management performance since acquiring Korea Semiconductor in 1974. After a month-long investigation, Samsung decided to refocus its business plan on memory and ultimately solidified plans to produce mainly DRAM and enter the competition. This marked the beginning of Samsung, a late market entrant, competing with the United States and Japan.

Another representative first-generation executive of Samsung Electronics' semiconductor business is former Vice Chairman Lee Yoon-woo. From 1983, when Samsung Electronics entered the semiconductor business, Lee led the VLSI (Very Large Scale Integration) business promotion team and spearheaded the development of 64K DRAM. He then succeeded in developing 256K DRAM in 1985 and passed IBM's product quality tests, showcasing Samsung Electronics' semiconductor technology capabilities both domestically and internationally. In 1987, fueled by the Apple PC boom, demand for 64K and 256K DRAM surged explosively, enabling Samsung Electronics to overcome cumulative losses related to the semiconductor business and turn profitable.

◆ The second-generation executives who surpassed Japan and made Samsung world-class... Jin Dae-je, Hwang Chang-gyu, Kwon Oh-hyun = Following them, former Presidents Jin Dae-je, Hwang Chang-gyu, and former Chairman Kwon Oh-hyun are second-generation executives who implanted the No. 1 DNA into Samsung Electronics.

Former President Jin, who worked as a researcher at IBM in the United States, returned to his homeland in 1985 to join Samsung Electronics despite the company's attempts to persuade him otherwise. Jin is known to have expressed his return intention by saying, "My lifelong wish is to surpass Japan. That is why I am returning to my country." Subsequently, Jin elevated Samsung Electronics' semiconductor business R&D, production, and marketing capabilities by, among other achievements, introducing the 16M DRAM prototype to the market ahead of Japan.

In 1988, former President Hwang, then a researcher at Stanford University in the United States, also decided to return to Korea upon Samsung Electronics' recruitment invitation. Hwang's "Hwang's Law" (the theory that memory semiconductor capacity doubles every year), announced in 2002, was regarded as the semiconductor industry's standard until the late 2000s. Within five years of joining, he succeeded in developing 256M DRAM and set world-first records with every new technology, including 1G DRAM, 4G DRAM, 300mm wafer mass production, and the introduction of nano processes. In fact, Samsung consecutively developed 256M DRAM in 1999, 512M DRAM in 2000, 2G DRAM in 2002, 4G DRAM in 2003, 8G DRAM in 2004, and 16G DRAM in 2005, proving Hwang's Law.

Former Chairman Kwon contributed to Korea's semiconductor industry surpassing Japan and reaching the world’s top by developing the world's first 64M DRAM in 1992. After joining the System LSI division in 1997, he served as head of the System LSI Business Unit from 2004, focusing on strengthening Samsung Electronics' system semiconductor technology. From 2008, as President overseeing semiconductors, he promoted Samsung's leap to a top-tier semiconductor company through the co-growth of memory and system semiconductors.

◆ The third generation focused on DRAM high integration... Kim Ki-nam = Vice Chairman Kim Ki-nam is credited with helping Samsung Electronics surpass Intel to become No. 1 in the overall semiconductor market. Since joining Samsung Electronics in 1982, he played key roles in the memory semiconductor high integration field, including leading the DRAM team at the Semiconductor Research Institute, overseeing next-generation memory technology and CIS development, heading the DRAM development office, and directing the Semiconductor Research Institute. Notably, in June 2014, he led Samsung Electronics' semiconductor boom as head of the Semiconductor Division and System LSI Business Unit, and in May 2016, as head of the DS Division semiconductor unit, he played a central role in DRAM high integration, elevating DRAM and flash memory development technologies to world-class levels.

Since he became CEO in 2018, Samsung Electronics has solidified its market share in DRAM. Technologically today, Samsung leads the memory semiconductor industry with the development of 3-nanometer (nm) MBCFET in DRAM and next-generation NAND with over 200 layers following 128-layer V-NAND in NAND flash.

"My knees were all scraped from designing semiconductors." About 20 years ago, Samsung Electronics researchers who developed the first domestically designed 256KB DRAM reportedly said this. At that time, circuit design was not done using computers as it is now, but circuits were drawn directly with pens on large blueprints, and researchers crawled on their knees over the blueprints, resulting in their knees being covered with wounds. The knee wounds of these researchers, who first designed 256KB DRAM independently in Korean corporate history, made today's Samsung Electronics and Korea's semiconductor industry possible. It was people alone who blossomed the semiconductor industry.