Meet 'Semiconductor Legend' Jim Keller
Review AI Ecosystem and Exchange Views with Key CEOs
Explore Future Preparations in Silicon Valley
Check Trade Policy Responses in Tennessee
LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo visited Tennessee and Silicon Valley in the United States for four days starting on the 17th (local time) to review North American business strategies and check the preparation status in the future growth engines of artificial intelligence (AI), bio, and cleantech (ABC). This was his first business trip to the U.S. in 10 months since August last year.
Koo Kwang-mo, Chairman of LG Group, is taking a commemorative photo with Jim Keller, CEO of AI semiconductor design company Tenstorrent, in Silicon Valley, USA. Photo by LG
According to LG Group on the 23rd, Chairman Koo visited AI semiconductor design company Tenstorrent and AI humanoid robot startup Figure AI in Silicon Valley to explore the entire AI value chain, including semiconductor design and robotics. Notably, on the 20th, he met with Jim Keller, the 'semiconductor legend' and CEO of Tenstorrent. Chairman Koo listened to explanations about AI semiconductor trends and Tenstorrent's technology and exchanged opinions on the impact of AI proliferation on the semiconductor industry.
Tenstorrent, headquartered in Toronto, Canada, started in 2016 as a fabless startup developing AI semiconductors, focusing on IP licensing (patent technology leasing) and customized chiplet design (technology that integrates multiple chips into one chip).
Chairman Koo also visited Figure AI and met with founder and CEO Brett Adcock to hear about the current status of the humanoid robot market and technology trends. He observed the operation of Figure AI's humanoid robot 'Figure One,' which was unveiled in March and attracted attention. Figure AI is a startup that has received investments from Microsoft, OpenAI, NVIDIA, Amazon, and others.
LG explained that Chairman Koo's trip reflects his usual belief that AI will trigger innovation in all industries and significantly impact business structures in the future. During his North American visit in August last year, he also visited Vector Institute and Xanadu Institute in Toronto, Canada, to review the latest trends in AI technology.
Koo Kwang-mo, Chairman of LG Group, is visiting the robot development startup 'Figure AI' located in Silicon Valley, USA, and examining a humanoid robot. Photo by LG
Koo Kwang-mo, Chairman of LG Group, is visiting the LG Electronics home appliance manufacturing plant located in Tennessee, USA, and inspecting the production line equipped with smart factory technology. Photo by LG
In Silicon Valley, Chairman Koo also visited LG Technology Ventures, which plays a global startup incubating role, received reports on investment and business development status so far, and encouraged the members. LG Technology Ventures is a corporate venture capital (CVC) established by LG in Silicon Valley in 2018, managing a fund worth about 1 trillion won contributed by seven major LG affiliates.
Chairman Koo examined products and technologies of startups invested in by LG Technology Ventures, such as Inworld AI, Echo Health, and South 8 Technologies, and exchanged views on the startup investment portfolio strategy to strengthen LG's future business competitiveness.
He also visited LG Electronics North America Innovation Center (LG NOVA), encouraging efforts to create new changes through an outside-in approach that collaborates with external startups to develop new business models and directly promote commercialization, and listened to the progress of new business development.
At this occasion, Chairman Koo said, "New businesses must be recognized in the market as competitive solutions, and ultimately, the key to unchanging success lies in differentiated customer value." He added, "Through this, let's create success cases so that more startups and partners come to LG, and a virtuous cycle of continuous development of new business models is established."
Koo Kwang-mo, Chairman of LG Group, is visiting LG Technology Ventures in Silicon Valley, USA, closely examining the technologies of key startups invested in by LG Technology Ventures. Photo by LG
Prior to this, Chairman Koo visited Tennessee to review the North American local business strategies of major affiliates such as LG Electronics. LG has positioned Tennessee, which geographically offers optimal conditions for battery and cathode material businesses, as a forward base for North American market penetration.
Chairman Koo visited LG Electronics' Tennessee plant with Ryu Jae-chul, President of LG Electronics H&A Business Division, and Jung Kyu-hwang, Vice President and North America Regional Head, to discuss response scenarios to changes in the business environment such as customer, competition, distribution changes in the U.S. market, and trade policies. He also inspected the washing machine and dryer production lines equipped with smart factory technologies such as robot automation and unmanned logistics.
He also visited the second plant of Ultium Cells, a joint venture between LG Energy Solution and General Motors (GM), received explanations on the North American electric vehicle market outlook and major customer trends, and reviewed plans for operating the portfolio of battery, cathode material, and other automotive parts businesses as well as investment strategies.
Chairman Koo said, "Market and customer trends, competitive landscape, trade policies, logistics, and other business environment volatilities are situations everyone faces equally." He urged, "To overcome these well, let's create another opportunity for leap forward by strengthening fundamental competitiveness such as product portfolio enhancement to provide differentiated customer value, supply chain establishment, process innovation, and localization capabilities."
Except for the COVID-19 period in 2020 and 2021, Chairman Koo has visited the North American market every year since 2019, the year following his inauguration, to conduct on-site management. During this North American trip, he met with employees six times in total, expressing gratitude for their efforts and dedication and urging them to have confidence and pride. He also emphasized, "To win the long race of sustainable growth, let's create big steps of challenge and leap."
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