Samsung set to unveil record $650b investment plan
South Korean giant is betting big on booming AI-driven chip demand
Seoul: South Korea's Samsung Electronics is expected to announce a record domestic investment plan next week, according to local media reports, in a massive bet on AI-driven semiconductor demand.
The 1,000 trillion won ($650 billion) package, to be announced by the chip giant and the government, is in line with President Lee Jae Myung's agenda for development in regions outside of the capital Seoul.
Lee will host a "National Mega Project" briefing on Monday, where Samsung will unveil major long-term investment plans, the reports said.
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Rival chipmaker SK hynix is also expected to announce spending plans at the same event.
Both companies are top producers of advanced memory chips used in the data centres that train and run artificial intelligence tools like chatbots and image generators.
The AI boom has sent the firms' profits and share prices skyrocketing, with Samsung recently agreeing a bonus deal with its workers' union to avert a major strike.
The Samsung investment package is expected to include about 300 trillion won for a new semiconductor complex in southwest South Korea - one of the regions that has fallen behind the capital in tech investment.
Some 60 trillion won would likely be earmarked for six chip manufacturing plants at Yongin in the south, and more than 350 trillion won for AI infrastructure including data centres, according to Maeil Business Newspaper.
The proposed 10-year spending package would be the largest investment commitment ever announced by a South Korean company.
Lee met Samsung chairman Lee Jae-yong in Seoul this week to discuss semiconductor investments, according to news reports.
The president also reportedly met SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won last week.
Samsung Electronics last year posted an operating profit of 43.6 trillion won - a 33 percent increase year-on-year.
The company is projected to achieve an operating profit in the mid-to-high 300 trillion won range this year, and 550 trillion won next year.
Kim Yong-beom, the presidential chief of staff for policy, said Wednesday that discussions on the planned semiconductor project in Yongin were in their final stages.
"Once everything is confirmed, we plan to bring together the companies and relevant ministries to explain the plan to the public at once," Kim said.
