Seoul aims to unveil first US investment project this week

South Korea could announce its first project as part of a $200 billion US strategic investment program as early as this week, Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan said Sunday, upon his return from three days of talks in the US. “We have yet to reach a final decision, so it is difficult to say anything definitive at this point,” Kim told reporters after arriving at Incheon Airport. “We plan to make an attempt sometime this week, and if we reach a final agreement, we hope to make an announcement within

2026-09-13 14:20:19:00

SK chief says Big Tech AI data center cooperation gaining pace

SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won said Friday that the group’s cooperation with Big Tech companies on artificial intelligence data centers was advancing rapidly. “The data center plan has been in the works for less than a year, but progress has been quite fast,” Chey said at the 2026 Ulsan Forum at the Ulsan Exhibition and Convention Center, adding that both he and other SK officials have continued meeting with Big Tech companies. SK is building an AI data center in Ulsan with Amazon Web Services,

2026-09-13 13:56:16:00

Dyson makes oral care debut with AI toothbrush

Dyson has entered South Korea’s oral care market with CameraJet, an AI-powered toothbrush that uses a built-in camera and targeted liquid jet to combine brushing and interdental cleaning in one device. The British appliance-maker unveiled CameraJet in Seoul on Thursday, presenting it as a solution for cleaning gaps between teeth that conventional toothbrushes struggle to reach. “To properly clean between teeth, you first need to precisely detect the gaps,” Rich Bacon, Dyson’s head of new categor

2026-09-10 15:06:40:00

SK hynix revises bonus deal with more cash, greater choice

SK hynix has increased the cash portion of its proposed performance bonuses after union members narrowly rejected an earlier agreement. Under a revised tentative deal announced Thursday, the chipmaker will pay its profit-sharing bonuses 50 percent in cash and 50 percent in company shares by default. The previous proposal called for 40 percent cash and 60 percent shares. Employees who prefer more stock may choose a share-based payout of between 50 percent and 100 percent in increments of 10 perce

2026-09-10 15:06:07:00

ChatGPT Enterprise users in Korea surge 28-fold

OpenAI Korea is entering its second year after explosive growth in corporate adoption, with the number of ChatGPT Enterprise users in the country surging 28-fold over the past year. Korea’s overall ChatGPT user base also expanded 35 percent during the period, the company said Wednesday at a press briefing marking the first anniversary of its local office. “When we opened our Korea office a year ago, we said OpenAI would become a partner in Korea’s AI transition,” said Kim Kyoung-hoon, general ma

2026-09-09 15:03:09:00

Samsung, Mistral AI team up on smarter chipmaking

Samsung Electronics is teaming up with French AI startup Mistral AI to build customized artificial intelligence models for chip design and manufacturing, deepening a relationship backed by Samsung’s investment in the European AI heavyweight. The strategic partnership will focus on deploying AI across Samsung’s semiconductor operations, including chip design, process optimization and engineering workflows. Samsung plans to integrate Mistral AI’s language models into its chip business and tailor t

2026-09-09 01:00:00:00

Samsung, ASML deepen partnership to advance high-resolution chip tech

Samsung Electronics and Dutch manufacturer of chip equipment ASML said Tuesday they would expand their long-standing partnership on next-generation lithography technologies critical to producing advanced AI chips. The expanded partnership between South Korea’s largest chipmaker and ASML focuses on high numerical aperture extreme ultraviolet lithography and advanced photomask solutions, areas expected to become increasingly important as chipmakers push the limits of semiconductor scaling. As part

2026-09-08 15:12:38:00

Samsung to begin second-half hiring across 19 affiliates

Samsung will begin its second-half recruitment Tuesday, with 19 affiliates hiring entry-level employees through the conglomerate’s group-wide recruitment program. Applications will be accepted through Sept. 15 via Samsung Careers, the group’s recruitment website, Samsung said Monday. The participating companies include Samsung Electronics, Samsung C&T, Samsung Biologics, Samsung Bioepis, Samsung Display, Samsung SDI, Samsung SDS, Samsung Heavy Industries, Hotel Shilla and Cheil Worldwide, among

2026-09-07 14:00:03:00

Squeeze it, crack it, chew it: Korea’s sensory obsession

The stationery and toy shops of Changsin-dong in central Seoul were once largely the domain of children and parents. These days, office workers in suits and job seekers carrying backpacks have joined the crowd. Many stop in front of displays piled with “mallang-i,” soft, often food- or character-shaped toys made for repeated squeezing and kneading, and “wakppu-bol,” or wax-crushing balls — palm-sized tactile toys with a thin, hardened wax-like outer layer. Squeeze one between your fingers and th

2026-09-05 09:00:00:00

Samsung narrows HBM gap with SK hynix

Samsung Electronics lifted its share of global high-bandwidth memory revenue to 33 percent in the second quarter, narrowing the gap with market leader SK hynix to 17 percentage points. Samsung’s share jumped from 21 percent in the first quarter as it expanded shipments of its latest HBM products to major global technology companies, Counterpoint Research said Friday. SK hynix retained the top spot with 50 percent of revenue in the April-June period, down from 64 percent a year earlier. Micron Te

2026-09-04 14:24:03:00