Samsung Electronics is considering the construction of an advanced semiconductor packaging facility in Gwangju, located in southwestern South Korea, according to unnamed industry sources. The proposal is reportedly under evaluation as the company weighs how best to expand its role in high-performance memory packaging that serves artificial intelligence (AI) data-center workloads.
Industry contacts indicate Samsung may make a formal announcement about the investment at a June 29 meeting convened by President Lee Jae Myung with leaders of the country's largest conglomerates. That session, to be held at the presidential office, is expected to emphasize a major shift in national growth strategy, with top executives from key groups likely in attendance.
Samsung Electronics Chairman Jay Y. Lee is expected to attend the meeting, and SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won is also slated to participate, the accounts say. The planned investment and the presidential meeting are being discussed within the context of a broader policy and industrial-priorities dialogue, according to the same sources.
The potential Gwangju facility would be intended to bolster Samsung's advanced packaging capabilities, a segment that has become integral to the AI chip supply chain. Demand has risen for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) used in AI servers, prompting chipmakers to expand capacity for technologies that stack and integrate multiple memory dies.
Advanced packaging enables manufacturers to combine separate chips into a single, higher-performing package. HBM technology stacks multiple DRAM chips vertically and is deployed alongside AI processors produced by firms such as Nvidia, according to the industry descriptions circulated with the investment discussion.
Samsung supplies memory products to significant AI customers, including Nvidia, AMD and Google, and has been actively seeking to increase its footprint in the HBM market where it faces competition from the market leader, SK Hynix. In May, Samsung said it began shipping samples of a 12-layer HBM4E device to customers, a step aimed at competing more aggressively in this fast-evolving segment.
The discussions around a Gwangju packaging plant reflect strategic considerations about capacity, proximity to customers and the evolving structure of the AI memory ecosystem. Officials and executives involved in the planning have not released formal statements, and the plans remain under evaluation as discussions continue ahead of the scheduled June 29 meeting.