Samsung "Regain Semiconductor World No.1 Within 2-3 Years... Accelerating AI Innovation and New Business Discovery" (Comprehensive)

Han Jong-hee, Kyung Kye-hyun, and Division Heads
Management 'All Hands On Deck' Dialogue with Shareholders
"Securing Leadership in the HBM Market"

Samsung Electronics has declared its intention to reclaim the world's number one position in semiconductors within 2 to 3 years.

Kyung Kye-hyun, President and CEO of Samsung Electronics' DS (Device Solutions) Division, stated at the 55th Annual General Meeting of Shareholders held on the 20th, "We will lead the market by developing a large-capacity 128GB module using 12nm (1nm = one billionth of a meter) class 32Gb DDR5 DRAM, and aim to regain leadership in the HBM3 and HBM3E markets through pioneering 12-layer stacked High Bandwidth Memory (HBM)."

President Kyung forecasted that the global semiconductor market will grow significantly this year to reach $630 billion (approximately 843 trillion KRW) compared to the previous year. He also expects the DS division’s sales to recover to 2022 levels. The company plans to increase the proportion of advanced processes in its core memory products, DRAM and NAND flash. He said, "We will develop new processes such as D1c DRAM, 9th generation V-NAND, and HBM4 with top-tier competitiveness to lead the industry again, and secure cost competitiveness by expanding the share of advanced processes and maximizing manufacturing capabilities."

In the foundry (semiconductor contract manufacturing) business, Samsung plans to enhance its competitiveness in the 2nm process. President Kyung said, "We have started stable mass production of mobile application processor (AP) products using the industry's first Gate-All-Around (GAA) 3nm process and plan to prepare for mass production of the advanced GAA 2nm process next year." The 2nm process is an advanced process that Samsung Electronics, TSMC, and Intel have all declared they will realize next year.

Regarding research and development (R&D), he stated, "We plan to invest 20 trillion KRW in the Giheung R&D complex by 2030 and double the semiconductor research institute both quantitatively and qualitatively."

Han Jong-hee, Vice Chairman and CEO of Samsung Electronics, is delivering the chairman's greeting. [Photo by Samsung Electronics]

Han Jong-hee, Vice Chairman and CEO of the DX (Device eXperience) Division, emphasized the promotion of "Samsung home appliances AI-ification." Vice Chairman Han said, "Samsung Electronics will actively apply AI to all devices including smartphones, foldables, accessories, and extended reality (XR) to provide customers with new experiences shaped by generative AI and on-device AI."

While strengthening competitiveness in existing businesses, the company plans to accelerate new business initiatives. Vice Chairman Han stated, "Samsung Electronics will continue to strengthen competitiveness in existing businesses while pursuing innovation in AI, customer experience, and ESG (environment, social, and governance), which are key future themes. We will also further strengthen the organization and execution system to discover various new products, new businesses, and new business models early." He added, "Samsung Electronics plans to actively foster new businesses such as next-generation automotive electronics, robotics, and digital health by advancing company-wide AI capabilities."

Samsung Electronics also pledged to faithfully implement its shareholder return policy. Vice Chairman Han said, "Despite a challenging management environment last year, we plan to pay dividends totaling 9.8 trillion KRW for the year to sincerely fulfill our shareholder return policy. We will continue to do our best to strengthen shareholder-oriented management."

On the morning of the 20th, shareholders are listening to the remarks of Han Jong-hee, Vice Chairman of Samsung Electronics, at the 55th Samsung Electronics Annual General Meeting held at the Suwon Convention Center in Yeongtong-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

At this shareholders' meeting, Vice Chairman Han shared the management status and business strategies for the year of the DX division, and President Kyung did the same for the DS division with the shareholders. In addition to Vice Chairman Han and President Kyung, CFO Park Hak-gyu, DS division CTO Song Jae-hyuk, and 13 other senior executives at the president level gathered separately for a "Dialogue with Shareholders." This was the first time that key executives held a separate dialogue with shareholders and received questions about business strategies.

Samsung Electronics attracted shareholder interest by setting up various exhibition booths at the shareholders' meeting venue to help understand and experience social contribution and win-win cooperation activities. A "Win-Win Market" was established to exhibit and sell products from 12 small and medium-sized enterprises that received manufacturing and technical know-how support through Samsung Electronics' smart factory support project. Booths included industrial protective gear, soap, and low-irritant scalp-soothing shampoo companies. There were also booths introducing Samsung Electronics' representative social contribution programs such as the Samsung Youth Software Academy (SSAFY), which supports youth software education, and Hope Stepping Stone, which helps young people preparing for independence.

From around 8 a.m., before the shareholders' meeting began, about 30 shareholders toured the central lobby on the 3rd floor of the center, the Win-Win Market, and exhibition spaces to experience the products. One shareholder said, "I came an hour early just to participate in the event. I have attended many companies' shareholders' meetings, but they were always stiff. Samsung Electronics' shareholders' meeting was refreshing."

About 600 shareholders attended the meeting that day. Additionally, all six agenda items ? approval of financial statements, appointment of outside director Shin Je-yoon, appointment of outside director Cho Hye-kyung as an audit committee member, appointment of audit committee member Yoo Myung-hee, approval of director remuneration limits, and others ? were all passed.