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From left: Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong and Tesla CEO Elon Musk. (Photo: Yonhap News) |
[Alpha Biz= Lee Joonhyun & Park Namsook] Samsung Electronics’ foundry division is experiencing an unprecedented surge in workload, driven largely by exceptionally demanding technical requirements from major overseas clients—most notably Tesla, according to industry sources on December 2.
A source familiar with Samsung's internal operations told Alpha Economy that the foundry division has significantly raised its engineering proficiency targets after securing large-scale orders. “Some foreign clients are submitting technical requirement documents that are extremely difficult to meet, even for Samsung’s foundry engineers,” the source said.
The increased pressure reportedly stems from Tesla, which is demanding performance and process capabilities that surpass even those of TSMC, the world’s top foundry operator. These requirements have become a heavy burden for Samsung engineers.
Yoon Yong-pil, visiting professor at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, commented, “Tesla does not want to be criticized for choosing Samsung over TSMC and ending up with inferior results. That’s why they are constantly pushing for top-tier performance.”
However, Yoon added that this pressure could ultimately benefit Samsung: “If Samsung’s foundry—often viewed internally as a burden—manages to withstand Tesla’s ‘hard training,’ it could achieve world-class technical capabilities in a shorter-than-expected time. In that sense, the situation may not be entirely negative.”
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