Hanmi Semiconductor to Supply TC Bonders to SK Hynix… 42.8 billion won
Hanmi Semiconductor announced on the 16th that it had received an order for thermal compression (TC) bonder equipment from SK Hynix.
The equipment that Hanmi Semiconductor is supplying to SK Hynix is the ‘Dual TC Bonder Griffin’, which is necessary for the production of high bandwidth memory (HBM). The supply volume is 42.8 billion won, and the contract period is until July 1.
The price per TC bonder is estimated at around 3 billion won, and the quantity that Hanmi Semiconductor will supply to SK Hynix is estimated to be around 15 units.
AMD to buy back 8.4 trillion won worth of its own stock
AMD, an American semiconductor company considered a rival to Nvidia, announced on the 14th (local time) a plan to buy back its own stock worth 6 billion dollars (8.4 trillion won).
AMD said its board of directors had approved the plan to buy back its own shares on the same day, adding that it is an increase from the previous purchase amount of $4 billion and is in addition to the existing share buyback program.
“This expanded share repurchase program reflects the board’s confidence in AMD’s strategic direction, growth potential and ability to continue to generate strong cash flow,” CEO Lisa Su said in a statement.
US: “Sanctions if you use Huawei chips”… Even if the tariff war stops, Chinese semiconductors will be hit
The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) announced in a statement on the 13th (local time) that it would abolish the AI export control policy based on country-specific ratings that the former Joe Biden administration had planned to introduce, and took measures to strengthen semiconductor export controls, such as restricting the use of Huawei chips.
BIS first emphasized that using Huawei Ascend chips violates U.S. export controls. The logic is that if Chinese high-performance chips, including Ascend chips, were designed and produced using U.S. software, design tools (EDA), and U.S. semiconductor equipment, then this would be a violation of U.S. export control laws.
On this day, BIS provided a notice to the industry with the same content, and pointed out Huawei’s Ascend 910B, 910C, and 910D series as chips with a high possibility of violating export control regulations. Recently, it has been widely used in China for AI training and inference, and has attracted attention as an alternative to Nvidia products.
Former Chairman of China’s ‘Semiconductor Giant’ Tsinghua Unigroup Suspended Death Penalty
China Central Television (CCTV) reported on the 14th that Zhao Weiguo, the founder and former chairman of Tsinghua Unigroup (Ziguang Group), a state-owned enterprise that symbolized China’s “semiconductor rise,” was given a suspended death sentence.
The Jilin Intermediate People’s Court (first trial) of Jilin Province, China, announced today that it had sentenced former Chairman Zhao, who was indicted on corruption charges including causing hundreds of billions of won in losses to the national economy and illegally occupying state-owned assets, to death with a two-year suspension of execution.
He was also permanently deprived of his political rights and ordered to confiscate all of his assets. He was also sentenced to five years in prison and a fine of 10 million yuan (approximately 2 billion won) for providing illegal benefits to his relatives, and three years in prison and a fine of 2 million yuan (approximately 400 million won) for infringing on the interests of a listed company.
India approves construction of semiconductor plant by local company HCL, Taiwan’s Foxconn
The Indian government, which is working to foster the semiconductor industry, has approved a plan by domestic information service company HCL Group and Taiwan’s Foxconn to build a semiconductor plant in India at a cost of 435 million dollars (approximately 610 billion won), Reuters and other news agencies reported on the 15th.
According to reports, Indian Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishno said the previous day that the government-affiliated India Semiconductor Mission (ISM) had approved the plan to set up a semiconductor plant.
The new semiconductor plant, to be built near the soon-to-open Jewar international airport in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, will have the capacity to produce 20,000 wafers, the prototype substrates for semiconductor integrated circuits, and 36 million display driver chips per month, Minister Vaishno said.
SK Group reorganizes its ‘AI/semiconductor infrastructure’ business
SK Group is incorporating four semiconductor subsidiaries of SK Materials into SK Eco Plant. In addition, SK Broadband has carried out a business reorganization to focus on data center infrastructure. This is a stepping stone to maximize the ability to respond to future growth businesses by ‘rebalancing’ the group’s portfolio centered on artificial intelligence (AI) and semiconductors.
SK Corporation announced on the 13th that it held a board meeting on the afternoon of the 12th and approved agenda items containing the above contents.
With this business reorganization, SK Group’s semiconductor service subsidiary, ‘SK Ecoplant’, will be reborn as a comprehensive semiconductor infrastructure and service provider. SK Ecoplant will newly take over four semiconductor material companies, SK Trichem, SK Resonac, SK Materials JNC, and SK Materials Performance, which were previously operated by SK Materials, a CIC company of SK Corporation.
Nvidia, AMD to supply semiconductors to Saudi AI data center
Nvidia and AMD have agreed to supply semiconductors for Saudi Arabian AI company Humain’s large-scale data center project. The project, worth a total of $10 billion, involves building artificial intelligence infrastructure, including data centers and “AI factories.”
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang announced the partnership at the Saudi-US Investment Forum in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Tuesday. AMD said it plans to supply chips and software to regions from Saudi Arabia to the US.
“AI requires enormous power, and for a country like Saudi Arabia that is rich in energy resources, NVIDIA’s technology can open up new possibilities,” Huang said.
China’s BYD establishes European headquarters in Hungary
BYD, China’s largest electric vehicle manufacturer, has surpassed Tesla to become the world’s largest, and is establishing its European headquarters in Hungary, Reuters and AFP reported on the 15th (local time).
BYD Chairman Wang Chuanfu held a joint press conference with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Budapest on this day and announced plans to establish a European headquarters.
Chairman Wang said the new European headquarters will create 2,000 new jobs and will perform three core functions: a sales and after-sales service hub, vehicle testing and localized model development.
Chaebi-Indonesia Helio, ‘Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure’ MOU
Chaebi (formerly Daeyoung Chaebi), the No. 1 rapid charging infrastructure operator (CPO), announced on the 16th that it has signed a strategic business agreement with VKTR and Helio Synar Energi (Helio), subsidiaries of Indonesia’s Bakrie Group, to build electric vehicle charging infrastructure and will make a full-scale foray into the Southeast Asian market.
Through this MOU, the two companies plan to strengthen their global alliance to dominate Indonesia’s public transportation and public (B2G) and private (B2B) charging markets. In the future, Chaebi will be responsible for the entire charger manufacturing and platform operation based on its unique technological prowess and operational experience secured in the domestic electric vehicle charging market, while Helio and VKTR will be responsible for the construction and operation of charging station infrastructure and the supply of electric buses, respectively, to maximize strategic synergy effects.
HiMK Co., Ltd. Completes Gumi Plant… “Mass Production of Electric Vehicle Battery Pack Parts”
HiMK Co., Ltd. completed construction of an electric vehicle parts factory in Gumi, Gyeongbuk on the 15th and began full-scale operations.
Hi-MK Co., Ltd. is a joint venture between LS Materials in Korea and HAI, an aluminum manufacturing company based in Austria. Last January, it signed an investment agreement worth 75 billion won with Gyeongbuk Province and Gumi City. Construction of the factory building and auxiliary facilities began on April 17 and was completed on that day. The number of new employees is approximately 50.
The newly completed Gumi plant plans to produce aluminum parts for eco-friendly EV vehicles based on HAI’s advanced aluminum extrusion technology.
Xiaomi Electric Car Fatal Accident and Exaggerated Advertising Add to the Bad News… April Sales Plummet 55%
Bloomberg News reported on the 15th, citing a Deutsche Bank report, that orders for Xiaomi’s electric sedan ‘SU7’ in April fell 55% month-on-month to about 36,000 units. “This downward trend continued in May,” Deutsche Bank’s automotive analyst Bin Wang pointed out in the report.
Earlier this month, local Chinese media reported that more than 300 orders for the ‘SU7 Ultra’ hood had been canceled due to controversy over exaggerated advertising.
Due to the electric vehicle recession… Battery 3 companies’ facility investment ‘drops’ by 23%
The total facility investment amount of the three battery companies, Samsung SDI (006400), SK On, and LG Energy Solution, in the first quarter of this year is 5.3372 trillion won. This is a 23% decrease from 6.9375 trillion won in the same period last year.
As the aftermath of the chasm obscures demand growth, all three battery companies are taking a breather from facility investments, while they are not sparing any expense in developing technology to prepare for the future. All three battery companies have increased their R&D expenses.
The fact that the three battery companies increased their R&D expenses despite the worsening business conditions is due to their desperation to quickly catch up with China. Chinese battery company CATL is maintaining its top position in the global battery market with its low prices as its weapon.
Electric vehicle charger parts are also domestically produced… LS Electric and Pumpkin collaborate
LS Electric announced on the 12th that it signed an MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) with Pumpkin for cooperation in the electric vehicle charging solution business at LS Tower in Anyang-si, Gyeonggi-do.
LS Electric and Pumpkin have decided to strengthen cooperation across the entire charger infrastructure business, including the development and application of DC solutions such as DC circuit breakers exclusively for domestic electric commercial vehicle chargers, and strengthening customer reliability by ensuring charger quality, and to jointly cooperate in entering new markets.
Hanwha Momentum Establishes ‘Process Research Institute’ to Develop Next-Generation Battery Equipment Technology
Hanwha Momentum announced on the 14th that it has established a ‘Process Research Institute’ within the Secondary Battery Research and Development (R&D) Center at its Asan Plant in South Chungcheong Province and has begun full-scale operation to develop cutting-edge battery equipment.
The Process Research Institute is dedicated to research and development of next-generation battery equipment and process technologies, such as all-solid-state batteries and dry processes. With the establishment of this research institute, Hanwha Momentum expects that the development of next-generation battery equipment and manufacturing process technologies, such as all-solid-state batteries, also known as “dream batteries,” and dry processes, will accelerate.
Uber to launch ‘shared autonomous driving service’ next year
Uber held its annual new product launch event, ‘Go-Get 2025’, in Manhattan, New York, USA on the 14th (local time). The key word was to provide commuters with a car sharing service at a cheaper price than before.
Among the six new services that Uber unveiled that day, the most notable one was ‘route sharing’. Uber drivers provide service by going back and forth on major commuter routes in large cities. If you request a ride service, you can get in a car for 20 minutes at a specific location, and the price is up to 50% discounted compared to regular Uber.
Uber also announced that it will launch a self-driving car sharing service in partnership with Volkswagen in Los Angeles, USA, in 2026. The plan is to use thousands of Volkswagen self-driving electric vehicles as Uber vehicles across the United States over the next 10 years.
Baidu’s self-driving cars enter Europe
Bloomberg News reported on the 14th (local time) that China’s Baidu’s self-driving cars (robotaxis) are advancing into Europe.
Citing inside sources, Bloomberg reported that Baidu’s autonomous vehicle subsidiary Apollo Go is planning to enter Europe within the year.
Apollo Go is already operating fully autonomous taxis in major Chinese cities, including Beijing. The company plans to establish a corporation in Switzerland and begin full-scale operations after conducting test runs there and in Turkey, the source said.
Autonomous A2Z, ‘First in Korea’ to Obtain Singapore Autonomous Driving License
Autonomous A2Z, a self-driving startup, announced on the 13th that it has become the first Korean company to obtain an ‘M1’ license for autonomous driving operation on local public roads from the Land Transport Authority under the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism of Singapore.
Singapore’s autonomous driving licenses are subject to different operating ranges and legal regulations depending on the level of technological maturity. The M1 license acquired by A2Z requires a safety driver to be on board within a set route in a limited environment. Licenses that require conditional safety driver onboard are classified as M2, and the fully unmanned stage is classified as M3.
Hyundai Rotem to supply driverless electric vehicles to Taiwan… 420 billion won
Hyundai Rotem announced on the 15th that it had signed a main contract for the supply of electric trains for the Taichung Blue Line ordered by the Taichung City Urban Rail Engineering Bureau in Taiwan. The project size is approximately 420 billion won.
The driverless train that Hyundai Rotem will deliver this time is characterized by enhanced operational safety through the application of forward collision avoidance device technology utilizing Lidar, cameras, and AI (artificial intelligence). It can carry up to 530 passengers at a time in a three-car trainset, and its top speed is 80 km/h.
SOS Lab Joins Hands with EMS… Accelerating Conquest of Smart Infrastructure Market
SOS Lab announced on the 12th that it signed a strategic business agreement (MOU) with EMS, a company specializing in eco-friendly energy solutions and smart technologies, to advance into the global smart complex sensor market.
Through this agreement, the two companies plan to establish a technology and business cooperation system between the two companies and maximize business synergy. In particular, they plan to actively seek collaboration for global market entry in the next-generation smart complex sensor field that EMS is focusing on.
EMS is a promising startup that is actively conducting research and development and business centered on energy, new materials, and smart technology.
Korean Display Starts Supplying OLED for iPhone 17
Major domestic display companies will begin mass production of panels for the iPhone 17 series starting in the second quarter of this year. Specifically, mass production of OLED panels for the iPhone 17 is expected to begin around May or June.
The iPhone 17 is Apple’s new flagship smartphone that is scheduled to be released in September. It will consist of four models: the regular, Air, Pro, and Pro Max.
Apple has decided to apply low-temperature polycrystalline oxide (LTPO) technology, which it has previously applied only to the two highest-end models, to all models starting with the iPhone 17 series. LTPO can improve power efficiency by replacing some of the transistors of the low-temperature polysilicon (LTPS) used in existing displays with oxide.
“iPhone 18 Pro, equipped with screen-embedded Face ID”
According to foreign news outlets on the 16th, Michael Helander, CEO of Canadian OLED material company OTI Lumionics, recently attended the SID Business Conference and said, “We expect a mobile phone with under-panel Face ID using our company’s materials to be released in 2026.”
OTI Lumionics is a company known to have a long history of collaboration with Apple in this field. The company is conducting research and development and production of key materials for OLED displays.
The news was first reported by renowned display analyst Ross Young, who predicted that the iPhone 18 Pro will feature under-panel Face ID, suggesting that other brands and models will follow suit.
Source: kipost.vn