This Year's Semiconductor Market: Darker Than Last Year, But With Hope
120 Speakers, 469 Companies Participating, 2,037 Booths Organized


As AI becomes the foundation of all industries, diverse issues such as smart manufacturing, machine learning, and autonomous driving are emerging, and winds of change are blowing through the semiconductor market.

In response, Semicon Korea is unfolding at a record-breaking scale.

At 'Semicon Korea 2019' held at COEX in Samsung-dong, Seoul from the 23rd to the 25th, 120 semiconductor industry experts—26 more than 'Semicon Korea 2018'—will share extensive knowledge and outlooks. The number of exhibiting companies increased by 7% to 469, and booths also increased by 6.1% to 2,037. Accordingly, approximately 50,000 visitors are expected to attend.


Winds of Change Blowing Through the Semiconductor Market
Clark Tseng, Director of Industry Research and Statistics at the Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International (SEMI), presented an analysis of future semiconductor market prospects at a press conference held one hour before the opening.

Director Tseng viewed the semiconductor market as having achieved solid growth in 2018, but as unlikely to do so in 2019 with increased uncertainty. This assessment was influenced by sluggish smartphone sales and political conflicts such as U.S.-China trade disputes.

As demonstrated by Q4 2018 results, the outlook for the memory market, which accounts for the largest share of the semiconductor market, can be seen as dim for 2019.

However, foundry equipment spending is expected to increase driven by strong 7nm process performance. On the other hand, wafer prices are expected to decline due to weakened demand.

In 2018, fab material prices rose 14% compared to 2017, and it is projected that they will rise 5% more in 2019.

Director Tseng took a long-term bright view of the semiconductor market outlook because technological innovation continues to advance, though not immediately.

How will the semiconductor industry change amid this rapidly shifting market? How should companies respond to this?


AI Fundamentally Changes the Semiconductor Market
The opening ceremony featured opening remarks by Jo Hyun-dae, President of SEMI Korea, congratulatory remarks from Ajit Manocha, SEMI CEO, and Lee Yong-han, Chairman and Korean member of SEMI's International Board.
In the keynote speeches, Shim Eun-su, Center Director of Samsung Electronics' Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology, Walden Rhines, Honorary CEO of Siemens Business, and Na Myeong-hee, Distinguished Engineer at IBM Research, shared their perspectives on AI and future computing, key topics in the semiconductor industry.

Director Shim stated, "Separate from cloud infrastructure, we anticipate the arrival of an 'on-device AI' era where AI computation is possible in smartphones and autonomous vehicles. Only when this era comes will the truly meaningful AI era open," he said.

Honorary CEO Rhines noted, "The field that accounts for over 99% of currently produced transistors is memory," adding, "Domain-specific semiconductors with architectures specialized for specific purposes will play that role as an alternative to address the explosively increasing transistor volume."

Engineer Na explained, "We have entered an era of broad AI capable of various roles from the era of narrow AI that only performs simple tasks. AI is not merely a technology but is in itself intended to help humanity, and through broad AI, human capability can be elevated," she said.

She continued, "To advance to the next step of broad AI—general AI—heterogeneous systems combining CPU, memory, networking, and AI accelerators must be adopted," and added, "Quantum computing must also be mobilized for the ultimate evolution of AI."


Various Supporting Events Enrich the Semiconductor Market Ecosystem
Beyond the over 2,000 booths, this year's Semicon Korea will host diverse events including ▲AI Summit ▲MEMS & Sensor Summit ▲Smart Manufacturing Forum ▲MI (Metrology and Inspection) Forum ▲Test Forum ▲SEMI Technical Symposium (STS) ▲Market Seminars ▲Procurement Consultation Sessions ▲University Student Exclusive Programs ▲International Standards Meetings and more.

At the AI Summit and MEMS & Sensor Summit, major companies in each field introduce related technologies and business models while exploring new business opportunities in their respective fields going forward.

At the Smart Manufacturing Forum, various approaches by global companies—from data collection to digital twin—for implementing semiconductor smart manufacturing can be seen.

The Test Forum introduces diverse testing technology requirements and solutions for automotive, 5G, and AI sectors.

Additionally, the MI Forum covers inspection measurement and testing technologies, the SEMI Technical Symposium covers semiconductor processes, and Market Seminars present the latest market outlooks.

The Procurement Consultation Session is a 1:1 business matching program designed to create new business opportunities for Korean companies participating in Semicon Korea and facilitate their entry into global markets.

The University Student Exclusive Program is a series of programs prepared for university students to create a positive image of the semiconductor industry and foster future semiconductor experts. Semiconductor process basic education, meetings with experts, and HTU Reunion programs are in place.
Jo Hyun-dae, President of SEMI Korea, stated, "Semicon Korea 2019 is South Korea's largest semiconductor industry exhibition that supports a healthy ecosystem in the semiconductor industry, expands global business opportunities for SEMI member companies, and surveys current and future semiconductor technologies," and added, "We are grateful that thanks to significant industry interest and participation, we are setting record-breaking scales every year, and we will continue to be an industry exhibition that supports the growth of the semiconductor industry."