Former Samsung executive: If the South Korean government does not decisively solve the problem of the semiconductor industry, “we will all die” – yqqlm

Kim Kwang-gyo, former director of the Samsung Electronics Semiconductor Research Institute, said that the Korean semiconductor industry needs more support from the government. “We must resolve the lack of manpower and regulations with determination not to lose the number one position. Otherwise, we will all die.”

According to the “Korea Economic Daily”, Kim Kwang-gyo pointed out in an interview with the media that “the competition in the semiconductor industry is so fierce that major companies need to compete with key rival countries and disclose their investment scale and technology level.” “But the Korean government is too contemptuous of the semiconductor industry.”

Kim Kwang-gyo is considered one of the masters who laid the foundation of the Korean semiconductor industry. Since Samsung Electronics established the Semiconductor Research Institute in 1979, he has served as the director of the Semiconductor Research Institute for 4 years. Until the early 2000s, he also served as the director of Samsung Electronics’ Princeton Research Institute in New Jersey and the first president of the Korea Semiconductor Display Technology Association.

He believes that the South Korean government needs to learn from the successful experience of Samsung Electronics. The tech giant started the business in 1974 when it bought a local company for $500,000. At the time, Samsung was struggling in the field, lagging its technology assessments more than a decade behind its U.S. and Japanese rivals in their early stages. “When we ask Japanese companies to cooperate or bring in technology, they say ‘you haven’t reached that level’, which makes us feel despised and embarrassed.”

“Samsung Group founder Lee Byung-chul has been committed to cultivating technical talents in order to become the world’s top company under difficult circumstances.” He added that continued investment has helped Samsung to occupy the throne of the memory chip business. In the 1980s, Samsung Electronics stood out in the global memory chip market by virtue of three favorable factors such as low oil prices, low interest rates, and the depreciation of the Korean won. “We have to be prepared to take our chances.”

“If the current lack of manpower and strict regulations persist, South Korea’s semiconductor industry may collapse,” he warned. “Even if the government and academia actively support the normal operation of businesses, we cannot guarantee that in this intense competition (Survival).” “The government should first change its attitude towards the semiconductor industry.”