#South Korea

South Korea's Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy announced a national semiconductor cluster plan, investing 800 trillion KRW (about 3.52 trillion RMB) to build four memory fabs in the southwestern region, aiming to double DRAM production within five years. This massive investment reinforces South Korea's dominance in the global memory chip market, especially as demand for DRAM is expected to surge fourfold in five years. It positions the country to lead in speed and capacity, potentially reshaping the semiconductor supply chain. The plan includes building a second semiconductor base in the southwestern region, with total investment of 800 trillion KRW over an unspecified timeframe. Additionally, the government will invest 30 trillion KRW over 15 years to support the initiative.

South Korea announced a $1 trillion investment plan to expand memory chip production and develop humanoid robots, aiming to boost its semiconductor and AI robotics industries. This massive government investment signals a strategic bet on both commodity memory chips and speculative humanoid robotics, potentially reshaping global supply chains and accelerating the commercialization of humanoid robots. The investment covers memory chips like DRAM and NAND, as well as humanoid robot development, coupling two seemingly disparate sectors. The announcement has drawn mixed reactions, with some questioning the rationale of linking memory chip production with humanoid robots.