This is the second installment of a two-part series on Korea‘s Chips Act and controversies surrounding a law meant to support the local chip industry amid heated competition around the world. -- Ed. To tackle a chronic workforce shortage in the domestic chips industry, Korean semiconductor giants Samsung Electronics and SK hynix have been ramping up efforts to acquire talents even before they become an adult. Under a new law, a Korean equivalent to the CHIPS for America Act, chipmakers

Technology Jan. 26, 2022

This is the first installment of a two-part series on Korea's Chips Act and controversies surrounding a law meant to support the local chip industry amid heated competition around the world. -- Ed. In the wake of the global chip shortage, supply chain disruptions posed by the pandemic, and tensions between superpowers -- the United States and China -- governments around the world are scrambling to support and protect their respective semiconductor chip industries. South Korea is one of the co

Technology Jan. 24, 2022

The escalating geopolitical tension between Russia and Ukraine is drawing attention to whether Washington will pose restrictions on exports to Russia, and the headache that could pose to South Korean electronics giants. The White House National Security Council has informally asked the Semiconductor Industry Association, a chip lobbying group in the United States, to brace for possible actions against Russia if it invades Ukraine, Reuters reported. The Joe Biden administration may attempt to c

Technology Jan. 21, 2022

Samsung Electronics said Thursday that the Korean tech giant and UK’s telecom carrier Vodafone have launched the first fifth-generation open radio access network site in the UK. Supported by Samsung‘s virtualized RAN solutions, Europe’s first scaled commercial open RAN project built on Vodafone‘s architecture enabled the first virtual call on the open RAN infrastructure between Vodafone and UK government officials on Jan. 11. The deployment marks a milestone following V

Technology Jan. 20, 2022

In the face of the Saudi Arabian government’s pledge to attract foreign companies to relocate their regional headquarters to its capital city of Riyadh, LG Electronics is being pressured to move on par with other multinational companies. According to LG Electronics and news reports, the tech company, dedicated to manufacturing TVs, monitors, laptops and home appliances, is considering establishing regional headquarters that oversees its operation in the Middle East and Africa, covering s

Technology Jan. 19, 2022

South Korean telecom carrier KT looks to launch autonomous delivery vehicles in Korea before the end of 2022 by partnering with Russian autonomous rover maker Yandex Self-Driving Group, KT said Tuesday. The two companies have signed a memorandum of understanding at a Yandex office in Moscow, and are at an early stage of cooperation to integrate KT‘s artificial intelligence and digital capability with Yandex’s self-driving technology. KT added the MOU, in addition to its launch pla

Technology Jan. 18, 2022

Samsung Electronics said Tuesday it has teamed up with California-based chip maker Advanced Micro Devices to unveil its flagship Exynos 2200 processor chips for mobile phones, in a delayed announcement by a week. The partnership with AMD in Samsung’s processor business has boosted energy efficiency and graphic processing performance compared to predecessors like Exynos 2100, the company said. Manufactured in Samsung‘s cutting-edge 4 nanometer extreme ultraviolet lithography proces

Technology Jan. 18, 2022

South Korea’s No. 2 telecom carrier KT and the nation’s second-largest banking group Shinhan Financial Group said Monday that they have forged a new alliance to spur collaborations on futuristic technologies in a cross-shareholding deal. Under the deal worth 437.5 billion won ($367 million), KT will acquire a 2.08 percent stake in Shinhan Financial Group, while Shinhan Bank, the group’s banking unit, will in return acquire a 5.46 percent stake in KT. As the result of the tr

Technology Jan. 17, 2022

South Korean telecommunication company LG Uplus has named Gabe Hwang, former executive at AT&T and WarnerMedia, as its inaugural chief data officer in its push for an innovation to enhance consumer experience and boost productivity, the company said Monday. Hwang will lead data-related businesses of LG Uplus from delivering data capabilities for client to the company’s artificial intelligence integration and digital transformation. Hwang’s addition will allow LG Uplus to

Technology Jan. 17, 2022

Though the pandemic has driven record-breaking profits for tech firms as demand for at-home leisure and communication hardware rises, it has also stoked a growing threat coming from patent trolls. Companies specializing in exploiting patent rights have been buying up intellectual property from firms struggling amid the pandemic and using it as ammunition against Korean firms. The approach is often seen as a “file-and-settle” strategy, as their targets would often prefer to avoid f

Technology Jan. 16, 2022

LG Electronics’ large capacity washing machines topped in a rating by Consumer Reports released a week prior, beating US rival Whirlpool‘s products in performance of washing more clothes at once, according to the industry Sunday. LG’s front-load washer WM9000HWA, one of the models under its LG Tromm brand, was ranked the highest in Consumer Reports‘ best large-capacity front-loaders rating for 2022. The model features a 147.2-liter capacity and LG’s own TurboWash

Technology Jan. 16, 2022

A mask-clad life-size tyrannosaurus rex in front of Seodaemun Museum of Natural History marks a boundary between the contemporary world in a battle against the pandemic and a venue that shows a glimpse of the prehistoric world.  A few steps past it, visitors inside the museum‘s main hall can let their imagination run wild as they bring themselves face to face with a skeleton of a 10-meter-long acrocanthosaurus and a model of a giant sperm whale hanging from the ceiling. At Seodaemun

Travel Jan. 15, 2022

It appears too soon to say that Samsung Display and LG Display, the nation’s top display makers, will exit from the less lucrative LCD market amid a cutthroat competition with Chinese rivals with cheaper pricing. Until a few years ago, the two firms had hinted at retiring from the old-school LCD business to focus on more advanced technologies such as upgraded LCDs or OLEDs to widen the gap with Chinese runner-ups. But experts here say there has been a sign of change in the attitudes mor

Technology Jan. 13, 2022

LG Electronics said Wednesday it has supplied its premium in-car infotainment system to be featured in the 2022 Mercedes-Benz EQS full-electric luxury sedan. LG’s system combines three displays – instrument cluster display, central information display and co-driver display – into a single, panoramic screen that stretches across the entire width of the car’s dashboard. Thanks to the use of a plastic organic light-emitting diode display, the South Korean tech giant said,

Technology Jan. 12, 2022

A former Samsung Electronics executive, who led patent prosecutions and litigations representing South Korea-based technology giant, was found to have turned against his previous employer with a patent suit. Synergy IP, founded by Samsung’s former vice president Ahn Seung-ho in 2020, was one of the plaintiffs that filed patent suits with the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas since November last year, according to a report by local media outlet Electronic Times

Technology Jan. 10, 2022