What Samsung’s US$17bil chip investment means to the industry

Samsung Electronics has to make a choice. It has to either split off its foundry business or system LSI business – which designs chips – to ensure clients that their chip info isn’t shared between the two businesses.

SEOUL: Samsung Electronics will invest US$17bil (RM71.6bil) into its foundry sector, a business that makes money by manufacturing chips clients have designed. But some experts say that despite the staggering size of the investment, the South Korean tech giant is unlikely to challenge the global foundry race led by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd (TSMC).

Instead of splurging cash, a structural change must occur to catch up with TSMC, a No. 1 foundry player with a global market share of 58% as of second quarter this year.