Kakao CEO Hong Eun-taek apologized Thursday over a recent controversy surrounding alleged stock manipulation in connection with the tech giant’s acquisition of K-pop agency SM Entertainment. “We apologize for causing concern to Kakao shareholders with the negative news that occurred during the process of taking over SM Entertainment's management rights," the CEO said at the company’s third-quarter earnings conference. “We are faithfully (talking) to the investig

Technology Nov. 9, 2023

SEJONG -- South Korean internet giant Naver opened its second data center in the city of Sejong on Monday, speeding up its big push to secure supremacy in the burgeoning artificial intelligence and cloud markets. Naver invited a group of reporters to its new data center, which it calls Gak Sejong, for the opening ceremony. The first of its kind, Gak Chuncheon, was set up in Gangwon Province in 2013. Located on a 294,000-square-meter site, Gak Sejong is one of the five biggest data centers in A

Technology Nov. 8, 2023

LX International, the trading arm of South Korea's LX Group, said Tuesday it will buy a major stake in a nickel mine in Indonesia as it pushes to expand its resources business. The company's board of directors has approved an agenda to invest 133 billion won ($101.6 million) to acquire a 60 percent stake in the Adhi Kartiko Pratama, or AKP, mine and secure its management rights. The acquisition will be LX's first nickel mine investment in the Southeast Asian country. Located near

Industry Nov. 7, 2023

Samsung Electronics co-CEO Kyung Kye-hyun, who oversees the tech giant's chips business, called on experts to conduct more in-depth research on the safety, trustworthiness and sustainability of artificial intelligence in line with rapid advancements in technology. “The spotlight has recently shifted toward generative AI technology, as it provides us the potential to unlock new solutions and address long-standing challenges. But the need for in-depth research on the safety, trustworthi

Technology Nov. 7, 2023

SEJONG -- With the increasing demand for next-generation semiconductors globally, Samsung Electro-Mechanics, an electronic parts manufacturing affiliate of Samsung Electronics, has been seeking to take the lead in the chip package substrate market. On Thursday, Samsung invited a group of reporters to its manufacturing site in Sejong, where a new plant for chip package substrates, the fifth of its kind there, is being built to be completed by May next year. "For next-generation chip packages

Technology Nov. 5, 2023

Naver CEO Choi Soo-yeon on Friday expressed her satisfaction with the company’s business results regarding its upgraded, hyperscale generative artificial intelligence model, HyperClova X, unveiled in August. “Based on what we’ve observed and experienced so far, we seem to be having better results than we expected," Choi said when asked about the level of the IT giant’s hyperscale AI-based business when compared to her prior expectations, during the company’s ea

Technology Nov. 3, 2023

The global semiconductor industry is struggling to make ends meet amid sluggish demand and price decreases, but German technology firm Merck sees Korea, the home of the world's two largest memory chip producers Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, still an attractive destination for business. “The leading players in the industry that are investing the most amount in new capacity, our Korean customers are at the top of that list. Making sure that we are continuing to engage with the leadi

Technology Nov. 2, 2023

SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won called on the board of directors to review the decision-making process of South Korea's second-largest business conglomerate’s overall management activities and actively provide feedback to help CEOs make optimal and balanced decisions, the group said Wednesday. “By making efforts to promote communication with executives and employees, the board of directors will be able to resolve (the group) affiliates’ problems and inconveniences, while pr

Industry Nov. 1, 2023

Samsung Electronics said Tuesday it reduced its deficit in the memory chip business in the July-September period while posting better-than-expected profits in mobile and display businesses. Samsung's device solutions division in charge of the company’s semiconductor business marked losses of 3.75 trillion won ($2.78 billion) for the division's third consecutive quarter of losses. So far this year, its chip losses have amounted to 12.7 trillion won, the company said in its third-q

Technology Oct. 31, 2023

Apple’s latest flagship smartphone series -- the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max -- debuted in Korea earlier this month with higher price tags than elsewhere. The new phones are priced from 1.25 million won to 1.90 million ($926.20-$1,407.80) here. Compared to their prices sold in the US, Japan and China, the Korean prices are almost 10 to 20 percent higher. But Apple’s pricing policy seems to have little impact on Koreans’ love for iPhones. Accor

Technology Oct. 31, 2023

LG Electronics said Monday it held the Global IT Challenge, a five-day IT skills competition for youth with disabilities, in Abu Dhabi, UAE, last week. Since its launch in 2011, more than 5,000 students from 40 countries have participated in the competition, which aims to enhance their accessibility to IT services and help them advance into society. (LG Electronics)

Technology Oct. 30, 2023

South Korean home appliance giant LG Electronics said Friday it would further develop strategies tailored to each country's consumption patterns and demand to deal with the aggressive global market penetration of Chinese rivals. "Chinese firms have deviated from a low-cost strategy and are actively investing in each production region, while strengthening their products and brand power," Kim I-kueon, vice president and head of home appliance and air solution business division at LG

Technology Oct. 27, 2023

Friday is the first anniversary of Samsung Electronics Executive Chairman Lee Jae-yong's official ascension to the top post at Korea's largest conglomerate. Over the past year, the Samsung chief conducted various management activities to explore new opportunities, laying the foundation for his own “New Samsung” vision, while succeeding the legacy of his father, the late Chairman Lee Kun-hee, who died three years ago. Experts agree that his push for “supergap technology” i

Technology Oct. 26, 2023

SK hynix, the world’s second-largest memory chip maker, said Thursday that it plans to boost its investment in high-value DRAM chips such as High Bandwidth Memory and DDR5, in line with the growth of the artificial intelligence market. “The capital expenditure for next year will increase compared to this year. … We’ll minimize the expansion by considering investment efficiency and financial stability,” Kim Woo-hyun, vice president and chief financial officer at SK

Technology Oct. 26, 2023

Competition is heating up between South Korean chip rivals Samsung Electronics and SK hynix to take the lead in the Compute Express Link, or CXL, technology amid its ongoing High Bandwidth Memory chip supremacy war. Although the market is still at the nascent stage, the two global DRAM leaders are seeing CXL as a potential game changer. CXL is an open, industry-supported interconnect between processors and devices such as accelerators, memory buffers and smart devices. It is considered a key tec

Technology Oct. 24, 2023