[Reporter’s Notebook] The Significance of Samsung Exynos in the Revival of Non-Memory Business

Exynos 2600 to Enter Mass Production in November
Non-Memory Division Accumulates Losses Amid Repeated Setbacks
Revival Signaled by Innovation, Guided by the Late Chairman’s Teachings

"We could not abandon this technology due to issues with overheating and yield, so we repeatedly redesigned it. The determination that 'we must overcome this to move to the next stage' was at the core. Now, a new phase of technological independence will begin."

The Asia Business Daily was the first to report in April this year about Samsung's plan to begin mass production of the Exynos 2600 within the year (April 10th edition). After six months, when mass production was finally decided, a Samsung Electronics official involved in the development shared this reaction.

Exynos is a mobile application processor (AP) brand launched by Samsung in 2011. It serves as the brain of smartphones. However, it has repeatedly faced overheating and yield issues, leading Samsung to use Qualcomm's APs alongside or exclusively in Galaxy phones. Last year, the previous model, Exynos 2500, which cost Samsung trillions of won, was also hindered by yield problems.

Exynos is designed by the System LSI division and manufactured by the Foundry (semiconductor contract manufacturing) division. Due to continuous setbacks, the two divisions posted a combined loss of around 2 trillion won in the first half of this year. Meanwhile, Qualcomm has increased AP prices by 15-20% annually, causing Samsung's expenses to soar. For Samsung, "technological independence" has become both a matter of pride and a prerequisite for ensuring profitability.

Until last year, the System LSI and Foundry teams blamed each other for the failures of Exynos, fueling internal conflict. After taking office, DS Division Head Jun Younghyun ordered an end to the prevailing "blame culture" within the company and instructed a complete redesign of the AP system. Exynos 2600 applied a new design, separating the AP and modem for the first time in a system-on-chip (SoC), and the Foundry division formed a dedicated team to focus on the project.

Samsung Electronics will begin mass production of the Exynos 2600 next month. Internal tests showed that its performance surpassed that of the A19 Pro, which was installed in the iPhone 17 Pro released last month. The neural processing unit (NPU) delivered performance more than six times higher. The central processing unit (CPU) multi-core performance was 15% better, and the graphics processing unit (GPU) performance was up to 75% superior. It is expected to be installed in the top-tier Ultra model of the Galaxy S26, which will be released early next year.

The revival of system semiconductors is raising expectations that Samsung will achieve both technological independence and improved profitability for its mobile division. October 25 marks the fifth anniversary of the passing of former Chairman Lee Kunhee, and the 27th marks the third anniversary of Chairman Lee Jae-yong's inauguration. "If you want to change, change thoroughly." The late chairman's advice at the 1993 Frankfurt meeting shaped today's Samsung. The lesson that "change is inevitable for survival" has been reaffirmed.