▲AI PRISM* Customized Economic Briefing
*Editor's Note: 'AI PRISM' (Personalized Report & Insight Summarizing Media) is an "artificial intelligence (AI)-based personalized news recommendation and summarization service" developed with support from the Korea Press Foundation. It selects and provides six customized news items by reader type.
[Key Issue Briefing]
■ AI Talent Recruitment Battle: Nvidia is successively establishing joint research labs with the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and Seoul National University, expanding practical AI research and talent exchange. Accordingly, a move to absorb Korea's top engineering talent into the Nvidia ecosystem is now beginning in earnest.
■ HBM4 Rivalry: AMD said it is on the verge of signing a final contract with Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) for sixth-generation high-bandwidth memory (HBM4). In addition, Nvidia has signed a 2 trillion won semiconductor packaging deal with Amkor Technology, intensifying competition over the AI chip supply chain.
■ Peptide Deregulation: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory committee recommended lifting pharmacy compounding restrictions on some peptide ingredients. Meanwhile, following the recommendation, shares of Hims & Hers, considered the biggest beneficiary of the compounding market, are rising.
[News of Interest to Startup Founders]
- Key Summary: Nvidia is establishing joint research labs with the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and Seoul National University to conduct practical AI research. Dr. Kim Hyun-woo, a former Nvidia researcher, will serve as co-director of the joint research lab at KAIST's Kim Jaechul Graduate School of AI, researching physical AI technology suited to Korea's manufacturing environment. Accordingly, KAIST will provide at least 10 researchers with Nvidia internship opportunities each year, while Seoul National University will expand student internships and cooperation with its robotics lab. In addition, Nvidia is moving to expand Korea's AI research ecosystem, along with its previously promised supply of 260,000 graphics processing units (GPUs).
2. [Exclusive] Lisa Su Unveils New Weapon…"Final HBM4 Contract with Samsung Imminent"
- Key Summary: AMD CEO Lisa Su said that the signing of a final contract with Samsung Electronics for the mass supply of sixth-generation high-bandwidth memory (HBM4) is imminent. AMD declared mass production of its AI server rack "Helios," which will ship from the end of the third quarter and be supplied in earnest from the fourth quarter. OpenAI, Anthropic, Microsoft, Meta, and Oracle have already been secured as customers, with Anthropic signing a deployment partnership of up to 2 gigawatts (GW). Meanwhile, after signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for priority HBM4 supply with AMD last March, Samsung Electronics is dispatching its foundry division head and others ahead of the final contract to conduct final-stage discussions.
3. Amkor, the Packaging Powerhouse Chosen by Nvidia, Set to Break AI Chip's 'Hidden Bottleneck'
- Key Summary: Nvidia has signed a 1.5 billion dollar (about 2.2 trillion won) advanced semiconductor packaging deal with U.S. semiconductor back-end company Amkor Technology. On this news, Amkor shares surged 17% in after-hours trading and have risen 63.14% so far this year. Amkor has already forged a 10-year long-term partnership with the world's largest foundry company, Taiwan's TSMC, and is also collaborating on packaging with Nvidia's rival AMD. In addition, in line with the U.S. government's push to reshore the semiconductor supply chain (the return of overseas companies to their home country), Amkor is building a large 7 billion dollar packaging plant in Peoria, Arizona.
4. Peptide Barriers Lifted…Hims & Hers Smiles
- Key Summary: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory committee recommended lifting the pharmacy compounding ban on some peptide ingredients, including BPC-157, TB-500, and KPV. These peptides have recently drawn attention on social networking services (SNS) for wellness and beauty purposes, but official verification has not been carried out. With U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. known as an advocate of peptide deregulation, Hims & Hers, a digital healthcare company with large-scale compounding pharmacy infrastructure, is cited as the biggest beneficiary, with its shares rising 3.35%. However, some FDA researchers and advisory committee members from academia still expressed opposition, citing a lack of safety evidence.
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