Intel: “1.8nm Process Development Goes Smoothly… Strengthening Competitiveness”
Intel announced that the development of the 18A (1.8 nanometer class) process is progressing smoothly. It also forecasted that there are high expectations for improved performance in the fourth quarter (October to December) due to restructuring and improved business conditions.
Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger said on the 1st, “We are confident that we can gain an advantage over the competition based on feedback from potential customers.”
“Now that the transition to EUV (extreme ultraviolet) is complete and the launch of Intel 18A is imminent, development of Intel 14A and beyond nodes is back on a more normal cadence,” he said. “We are crazy focused on improving fab productivity to be able to produce more at a lower cost.”
OpenAI abandons plans to produce semiconductors directly
On the 29th (local time), Bloomberg and Reuters reported that ChatGPT developer OpenAI is developing a dedicated AI chip in cooperation with the American semiconductor company Broadcom, and is in discussions with Taiwan’s TSMC for manufacturing.
OpenAI, the world’s most expensive AI startup with a market cap of $157 billion (about 208 trillion won), used Nvidia’s AI accelerators to train AI models, but as Nvidia chip prices rose and supply became insufficient, it has been looking for ways to supply its own chips. The plan was to attract large global investments to establish an AI semiconductor company and build a dedicated foundry factory. To this end, CEO Sam Altman is said to have contacted figures from oil-producing countries in the Middle East and foundry companies such as Intel and Samsung Electronics early this year, and even proposed to TSMC to build 30 dedicated factories.
However, OpenAI recently abandoned this plan, citing sources, because it realized that foundries require a huge amount of time and money, and that it would be faster and more feasible to work with other companies to make chips for now.
Baekkwang Industry to Build Semiconductor and Display Core Material Manufacturing Facility in Saemangeum
The Saemangeum Development Agency (Director Kim Kyeong-an), Jeonbuk Special Self-Governing Province, Gunsan City, and Korea Rural Community Corporation announced on the 31st that they signed an ‘Investment Agreement (MOU) for the Establishment of a Semiconductor Core Material Manufacturing Facility’ with Baekgwang Industry on the 30th.
Baekkwang Industry is a chemical materials company that has been safely producing its main products, caustic soda (NaOH) and chlorine (Cl2), for 70 years. In particular, it produces high-purity chlorine and hydrogen chloride, which are used as materials for semiconductors and displays, and supplies them to Samsung Electronics and others.
This investment agreement follows the investment agreement signed by Baekgwang Industry in December of last year to establish a secondary battery electrolyte salt core raw material production plant, and is for the establishment of a second plant with an additional investment of 2.5 times the investment amount at that time (approximately KRW 300 billion).
JNTC supplies first samples of large-area TGV glass substrates
JNT Corporation announced on the 29th that it will supply samples of its self-developed large-area TGV glass substrate to three global packaging companies. This is approximately four months after the launch of the TGV glass substrate prototype in June.
The TGV glass substrate supplied this time is a large-area product (510*515㎜) that is five times larger than the existing prototype (100*100㎜). Specialized technologies for via holes and glass-through electrodes (TGV) were applied.
A JNTC official said, “In addition to the three customers who are supplying samples this time, we are discussing specific product specifications and unit prices with a number of global packaging customers,” and “We plan to begin full-scale mass production plant preparations in the fourth quarter of this year by utilizing the remaining site of our fourth factory in Vietnam.”
Arm “Developing AI Chiplet Platform with Samsung Foundry”
Arm, the world’s largest semiconductor design asset (IP) company, is developing a chiplet platform by manufacturing ARM-based central processing units (CPUs) using Samsung Electronics Foundry’s 2㎚ (nanometer, one billionth of a meter) process.
ARM Vice President James McNiven said at the ‘Arm Tech Symposia 2024’ held at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Seoul on the 1st, “We are promoting ‘Arm Total Design’ that combines semiconductor design and foundry manufacturing through global collaboration, and we are currently developing an AI central processing unit (CPU) chiplet platform in cooperation with Samsung Foundry, Rebellion, and AD Technology.”
Arm is a company that creates ‘design assets (IP)’, which are the blueprints of semiconductor designs, and provides IP to global semiconductor manufacturers such as Samsung Electronics.
Infineon Unveils Ultra-Thin 20µm Silicon Power Wafers
Infineon Technologies AG (FSE: IFX / OTCQX: IFNNY) announced a breakthrough in the processing of the thinnest silicon power wafers ever, measuring just 20 µm (micrometers) thick and 300 mm in diameter, in its high-volume semiconductor fabs. These ultra-thin silicon wafers are just a quarter the width of a human hair and half the current state-of-the-art wafer thicknesses of 40-60 µm.
Infineon predicted that this achievement will contribute to improving energy efficiency, power density, and reliability of power conversion solutions for AI data centers as well as consumer, motor control, and computing applications. By reducing the wafer thickness by half, the wafer substrate resistance is reduced by 50%, which reduces power loss in the power system by more than 15% compared to existing silicon wafer-based solutions.
Senic, Halo and SiC Wafer Processing Collaboration
Senic, a silicon carbide (SiC) material company for power semiconductors, announced on the 30th that it signed a wafer processing business agreement (MOU) with Halo of the United States.
Halo, a specialist in SiC and gallium nitride (GaN) wafer processing, will collaborate with Senic to shorten product launch times and reduce costs.
Koo Gap-ryeol, CEO of Senic, said, “We will work closely with Halo to improve the processing quality and reduce the cost of the 150mm SiC wafers that have been developed and the 200mm wafers that are currently under development.”
Cherry-Huawei sells 30,000 units of ‘Luxid R7’ in one month of release
According to Car News China on the 29th (local time), the Luxe R7, the first electric coupe SUV developed in collaboration between Huawei and Chery, achieved 30,000 orders in just 33 days since its launch.
It received more than 6,000 orders within 24 hours of its launch, and over 20,000 orders within two weeks. It is currently offering a 35,000 yuan (about 6.7 million won) discount as a first-sale period benefit.
Huawei, a latecomer in the electric vehicle market, is actively targeting the market through a joint front with existing automakers.
Lotte Energy Matters, Third Quarter Deficit Turned to Slowdown in Electric Vehicle Market
Lotte Energy Materials announced on the 1st that it recorded consolidated sales of KRW 211.4 billion, operating loss of KRW 31.7 billion, and net income of KRW 6.5 billion in the third quarter of this year. Sales decreased by 2.9% compared to the same period last year. This is due to a decrease in sales volume caused by customer inventory adjustments due to sluggish sales of electric vehicles in the European market.
Operating profit turned to a deficit due to increased fixed costs resulting from a decrease in the operating rates of the domestic Iksan plant and the Malaysian plant, inventory valuation losses, and local exchange rate volatility in Malaysia. In the upcoming fourth quarter, the recovery in demand is expected to be somewhat limited due to the impact of inventory adjustments by European customers.
Hankook & Company Acquires Hanon Systems
Hankook & Company announced on the 1st that it signed a stock purchase agreement (SPA) with Hankook & Company (Han & Co.) on the acquisition of Hanon Systems on the 31st of last month. It has been about 180 days since Hankook & Company Group and Hankook & Co. signed an investment memorandum of understanding (MOU) for the acquisition of Hanon Systems in May. The amount invested by Hankook & Company in this acquisition is approximately KRW 1.73 trillion, including KRW 365.1 billion in paid-in capital increase. Adding the 25.53% stake purchased from Hankook & Co., the paid-in capital increase, and existing holdings, Hankook & Company’s stake in Hanon Systems is 54.77%.
The acquisition of Hanon Systems by Hankook & Company Group is expected to be finalized within the year. The company explained, “Prior to signing the main contract, overseas business combination review approvals were also completed in the US, EU, Canada, China, Turkey, Mexico, etc.” and “Once overseas government approvals such as the Foreign Subsidy Regulation (FSR) are obtained and the payment for existing shares held by Hankook & Company and new shares issued through paid-in capital increase are paid, the acquisition will be completed.”
Evesys to launch research and development of solar-based electric vehicle charging stations
EBISYS announced on the 1st that it signed a business agreement (MOU) with OCI Power for the ‘Construction of a Distributed Energy Convergence EV Station for Carbon Neutrality’.
With this agreement, the two companies will pursue a joint project called ‘Distributed Energy Convergence EV Station for Carbon Neutrality.’ The EV station is a solar energy-based electric vehicle charging station consisting of a rapid charger, solar power generation system, and energy storage system (ESS).
EcoPro C&G Imports Recycled Minerals from Japanese Waste Battery Company
EcoPro C&G, which is in charge of the battery recycling business within the EcoPro Group, announced on the 31st that it has signed a mid- to long-term supply contract for black mass (recycled mineral powder) with a Japanese waste battery recycling company.
EcoPro C&G recently signed a black mass supply contract and a mid- to long-term cooperation business agreement (MOU) with METALDO, a waste battery recycling company in Osaka, Japan. This is the first time EcoPro C&G has signed a black mass supply contract with an overseas company.
Metaldu is a company specializing in recycling waste batteries, established in 1962. It receives waste batteries from leading Japanese battery companies such as Panasonic and produces black mass. EcoPro C&G processes and handles the black mass received from Metaldu to extract valuable metals such as lithium.
China’s CNGR to Invest 14.5 Trillion Won to Build Battery Production Complex in Indonesia
China’s Zhongwei New Materials (CNGR), the world’s largest company in the market share of precursors, a key material for secondary batteries, has decided to invest 14.5 trillion won in Indonesia to build a large-scale battery production complex.
According to Indonesian economic media Bisnis and others on the 31st (local time), CNGR Indonesia held a press conference the previous day and announced that CNGR would invest 10.5 billion USD (approximately 14.5 trillion KRW) in three stages over 10 to 15 years to build a large-scale battery industrial complex.
Magdalena Veronica, Public Relations Director, explained that although the exact site for the industrial complex has not been determined, it is expected to cover an area of 30 to 50 square kilometers and that it will receive benefits such as land provision from the Indonesian government as it has been granted national strategic project status.
He also said that the industrial complex project is open to other companies besides CNGR to invest in industries such as batteries, adding that CNGR plans to focus its investment on battery materials, which is its core business.
POSCO: “Comprehensive Completion of Silicon Anode Material Plant Next Week… MOU for Supply in Progress”
POSCO Holdings announced in a conference call after announcing its performance on the 30th, “The POSCO Silicon Solutions plant will be (comprehensively) completed next week,” and “We plan to proceed with customer certification before full-scale production.”
He continued, “We are in discussions with not only the three domestic battery companies, but also Japan’s P Company, Europe’s M Company, and several companies in the U.S., and have submitted samples for certification,” and explained, “We are also in the process of signing MOUs with some customers to supply a significant amount of products, and we will obtain certification as soon as possible.”
Autonomous Driving SW Startup Rideflux Attracts 26 Billion Investment
Rideflux, a self-driving software startup, announced on the 31st that it had attracted 26 billion won in Series B investment. This brings Rideflux’s total investment to 55.2 billion won.
Rideflux is a technology company developing autonomous driving software, and its goal is unmanned autonomous driving. Its technological prowess was recognized in June when it received the first temporary unmanned autonomous driving operation permit in Korea.
Rideflux has been advancing its technology through various autonomous driving open services since 2020. In March of this year, it introduced the ‘Nemo Ride’ service, which runs around the Jeju Science and Technology Complex with Kakao Mobility, and is currently operating the world’s longest-distance bus-type autonomous driving service on the 116km round trip between Jeju City Hall and Seogwipo City Hall.
‘Robot autonomous driving SW’ Clobot, listed on KOSDAQ
Clobot, a service robot software company, was listed on KOSDAQ on the 28th. Founded in 2017, Clobot is the first company in Korea to commercialize a universal autonomous driving solution for indoor autonomous robots and a heterogeneous robot control solution, and is supplying it to approximately 130 clients.
It attracted a total of 32 billion won in investment from Hyundai Motor Group Zero One, Naver D2SF, and Lotte Ventures.
Last year, the company achieved sales of 24.2 billion won based on consolidated figures, and has maintained an average annual growth rate of 79% for the four years since 2020. This year, it is presenting a sales target of 38.1 billion won, a 57% increase.
DH Autoware Completes North American Factory, Begins Supply of Core Autonomous Driving Components
Automotive electronics company DH Autoware announced on the 30th that it has completed construction of a Mexican plant and is making full-scale inroads into the North American market. DH Autoware plans to supply core autonomous driving components to Hyundai and Kia Motors through the Mexican plant, and plans to expand its supply to global automakers centered on North America in the future.
The Mexican factory is equipped with the latest facilities in the Monterrey area, with a land area of 79,820㎡ (24,145 pyeong) and a building area of 219,990,000㎡ (6,654 pyeong). It is expected to produce core autonomous driving components through five SMT dual lines, four post-processing lines, and six assembly lines. DH Autoware expects annual sales of up to KRW 600 billion when the Mexican factory is fully operational.
Google’s self-driving Waymo, 7 trillion won in funding… “Service expansion”
Waymo, Google’s self-driving subsidiary, has succeeded in attracting 7.7 trillion won in investment.
Waymo announced on the 25th (local time) that it had successfully completed its recent Series C funding round worth 5.6 billion dollars (7.7 trillion won).
Google’s parent company Alphabet and early investors including Silicon Valley’s famous venture capital firms Andreessen Horowitz, Tiger Global, and Fidelity led this round. The specific investors and investment amounts were not disclosed. Google announced in July that it planned to invest an additional $5 billion in Waymo over the next few years.
This latest funding round brings Waymo’s total funding to over $11 billion. Waymo has raised $3.2 billion and $2.5 billion in two previous rounds.
Apple to launch mixed reality headset ‘Vision Pro’ in Korea next month
Apple announced on the 31st that it will begin accepting pre-orders for its mixed reality (MR) headset ‘Vision Pro’ on the 4th of next month and will officially launch it in Korea on the 15th of the same month.
The Vision Pro is a headset that Apple calls a “spatial computer,” and was first released in the United States in February of this year.
The ultra-high-resolution display system uses micro OLED (organic light-emitting diode) technology, and the advanced spatial audio system uses two separate amplification drivers to make the user feel as if the sound is coming from the environment surrounding them.
LCD TV panel prices stop falling due to Chinese demand… Monitor panels face intensifying low-price quantity offensive
According to market research firm Omdia on the 28th, LCD TV panel prices continued to fall in the second half of this year and then turned to a flat trend in October. The average price of the most popular size, 55-inch LCD TV panels, fell 7.3% from $136 in May to $126 in September.
The price of 66-inch panels also fell 5.4% from $182 in May to $172 in September. The industry initially expected panel prices to fall more rapidly in the fourth quarter, but contrary to previous expectations, the decline stopped in October. Omdia predicted that panel prices would not fall further and would remain flat until the end of this year.
Source: kipost.net