South Korea's Supreme Court issued its first official position on abolishing prosecutors' supplementary investigation authority, urging safeguards to prevent side effects from the reform.
Former President Yoon Suk-yeol faces a first-instance verdict on the 13th over free opinion polls, while the Supreme Court rules on Kim Keon-hee's stock manipulation case on the 16th.
Japanese snack maker Calbee is ending black-and-white packaging for some products, returning to color, prompting consumers to rush and buy the "limited edition" black-and-white versions.
HBM4 prices could more than double to $4-5 per Gb next year amid surging AI demand and supply bottlenecks, strengthening Samsung and SK hynix pricing power, DigiTimes reported.
Presidential Office policy chief Kim Yong-beom warned that delaying semiconductor fab expansion could cede market share to Chinese rivals, stressing production capacity as the new national power.
SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won says memory chips are no longer a cyclical industry, citing surging KV caching demand from AI, and introduces the "Memory as a Service" concept.
LG Electronics (066570.KS) is developing an AI chip-based server rack targeting Nvidia and plans to begin mass production next year. The move expands the recent AI infrastructure alliance between LG and Nvidia into server rack manufacturing. According to the semiconductor industry on the 12th, LG Electronics' Production Research Institute (PRI) completed development of an AI server rack prototype matching the compute tray specifications of Nvidia's "Vera Rubin" in the first half of the year. LG plans to secure orders from global big tech companies after reliability evaluations in the second half and begin mass production next year. The research and development was conducted at a 1.8-megawatt data center cluster established at LG PRI's Pyeongtaek site. A compute tray is a module that integrates computing units such as graphics processing units (GPUs) into a single board, with dozens of trays stacked vertically to form a single rack. In the Vera Rubin rack, a total of 108 AI chips operate simultaneously, generating enormous heat, so how quickly and stably the heat is cooled determines the performance of the AI server rack. LG Electronics has transferred the cooling technology accumulated over 58 years, since it launched Korea's first home air conditioner in 1968, to its AI racks. Already holding air-cooling and water-cooling technologies for AI servers, LG Electronics applied a "direct-to-chip (DTC)" cooling method to this AI rack, circulating coolant around the chips to control heat generation. AI server rack manufacturing is the final piece that will complete LG Group's data center turnkey strategy. LG is targeting the AI data center construction market with its "One LG" strategy, which combines LG Electronics' heating, ventilation and air conditioning, LG Energy Solution's batteries, and LG CNS's data center construction capabilities. LG Chairman Kwang-mo Koo is known to have discussed expanding data center cooperation, including AI rack supply, with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, who visited the company's Yeouido headquarters last month. "With server rack development, LG will cover all areas of AI data centers except the chip and power sectors," an industry official said....
On the 19th of last month, as a train departing from Kagoshima-Chuo Station approached Kirishima in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan, the view outside the window revealed forests densely packed with cedar and bamboo rather than people. The near-primeval forest is a sight to behold for tourists, but for residents it is also a scene that reflects the town's decline. As the number of people to tend the land has dwindled, the neglected forests have become a hazard, spilling onto roads during each rainy season and typhoon. Kirishima-jingu Station, situated in the middle of the forest, is the center of the Kirishima district, home to just over 4,000 people. In the past, a considerable number of station staff worked there, and restaurants, bars and inns lined the area in front of the station. But with population decline and aging, the station became unmanned. Most tourists visiting the shrine were simply passing through, waiting briefly for a bus or taxi before leaving right away. The turnaround began three years ago, when a parfait cafe called "Quili" and a select shop moved into the empty space inside the station building. The stores displayed not mass-produced souvenirs but artisan-made umbrellas, aprons, dishes and cosmetics. Tourists sat in the cafe while waiting for buses, browsed the goods, and took photos and videos. Iline, a visitor from France, said, "I had only thought about the usual tourist course, but I was surprised there was so much to see inside the station building." Clarice Wu, a visitor from Hong Kong, also traveled all the way from Fukuoka after seeing a video on a Chinese social platform describing "the station building itself as a sight to see." She said, "I regret coming on a day trip." The change also occurred outside the station. Tourists who slowed their pace at the station began walking out into the alleys, seeking out bakeries, cafes and lodgings. The footsteps of tourists who once headed straight to the shrine shifted toward paths that pass through the station and the town. By stopping tourists at the unmanned station that people had abandoned, the dying town began to see people strolling its streets once again....
SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won said on the 10th that "the semiconductor industry now clearly does not move on the same cycle as before," adding that "right now the gap between demand and supply is enormously large, and in terms of growth pace, demand is outstripping supply." Chey held a briefing with Korean correspondents at the Nasdaq MarketSite in Manhattan, New York, where he made the remarks. "The artificial intelligence (AI) we see now is only at the level of a 4-to-5-year-old child, so to reach artificial general intelligence (AGI, AI that learns, reasons, and solves problems on its own like humans), it must learn an enormous amount of information, and the storage medium for that can only be memory chips," he stressed. The comment signals that even as memory chip performance improves, demand growth is overwhelming supply, prompting an aggressive expansion of production facilities. Regarding the U.S. push for investment in America, Chey stressed that "to build a memory chip fab (production plant), various requirements must be met, including electricity, clean water, and large sites of land." He said, "If there is a location that meets those conditions, I will not care whether it is in the United States or anywhere else in the world." He kept his distance, however, adding that "we can review it, but our position is not that we will definitely do it." Meeting reporters to mark the successful listing of SK hynix's (000660.KS) American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) on the Nasdaq market, Chey also hinted at a plan to conduct a par-value split of the common shares listed on Korea's KOSPI market. "If the chief financial officer (CFO) requests it, of course we will do it," he said. On the pursuit by China's semiconductor industry, Chey stressed, "By the time you feel threatened, it is already too late," adding, "We need to move a bit faster and also expand our portfolio of AI technologies."...
◆ WAN-IFRA Gold
LG Electronics (066570.KS) is developing an AI chip-based server rack targeting Nvidia and plans to begin mass production next year. The move expands the recent AI infrastructure alliance between LG and Nvidia into server rack manufacturing. According to the semiconductor industry on the 12th, LG Electronics' Production Research Institute (PRI) completed development of an AI server rack prototype matching the compute tray specifications of Nvidia's "Vera Rubin" in the first half of the year. LG plans to secure orders from global big tech companies after reliability evaluations in the second half and begin mass production next year. The research and development was conducted at a 1.8-megawatt data center cluster established at LG PRI's Pyeongtaek site. A compute tray is a module that integrates computing units such as graphics processing units (GPUs) into a single board, with dozens of trays stacked vertically to form a single rack. In the Vera Rubin rack, a total of 108 AI chips operate simultaneously, generating enormous heat, so how quickly and stably the heat is cooled determines the performance of the AI server rack. LG Electronics has transferred the cooling technology accumulated over 58 years, since it launched Korea's first home air conditioner in 1968, to its AI racks. Already holding air-cooling and water-cooling technologies for AI servers, LG Electronics applied a "direct-to-chip (DTC)" cooling method to this AI rack, circulating coolant around the chips to control heat generation. AI server rack manufacturing is the final piece that will complete LG Group's data center turnkey strategy. LG is targeting the AI data center construction market with its "One LG" strategy, which combines LG Electronics' heating, ventilation and air conditioning, LG Energy Solution's batteries, and LG CNS's data center construction capabilities. LG Chairman Kwang-mo Koo is known to have discussed expanding data center cooperation, including AI rack supply, with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, who visited the company's Yeouido headquarters last month. "With server rack development, LG will cover all areas of AI data centers except the chip and power sectors," an industry official said....
On the 19th of last month, as a train departing from Kagoshima-Chuo Station approached Kirishima in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan, the view outside the window revealed forests densely packed with cedar and bamboo rather than people. The near-primeval forest is a sight to behold for tourists, but for residents it is also a scene that reflects the town's decline. As the number of people to tend the land has dwindled, the neglected forests have become a hazard, spilling onto roads during each rainy season and typhoon. Kirishima-jingu Station, situated in the middle of the forest, is the center of the Kirishima district, home to just over 4,000 people. In the past, a considerable number of station staff worked there, and restaurants, bars and inns lined the area in front of the station. But with population decline and aging, the station became unmanned. Most tourists visiting the shrine were simply passing through, waiting briefly for a bus or taxi before leaving right away. The turnaround began three years ago, when a parfait cafe called "Quili" and a select shop moved into the empty space inside the station building. The stores displayed not mass-produced souvenirs but artisan-made umbrellas, aprons, dishes and cosmetics. Tourists sat in the cafe while waiting for buses, browsed the goods, and took photos and videos. Iline, a visitor from France, said, "I had only thought about the usual tourist course, but I was surprised there was so much to see inside the station building." Clarice Wu, a visitor from Hong Kong, also traveled all the way from Fukuoka after seeing a video on a Chinese social platform describing "the station building itself as a sight to see." She said, "I regret coming on a day trip." The change also occurred outside the station. Tourists who slowed their pace at the station began walking out into the alleys, seeking out bakeries, cafes and lodgings. The footsteps of tourists who once headed straight to the shrine shifted toward paths that pass through the station and the town. By stopping tourists at the unmanned station that people had abandoned, the dying town began to see people strolling its streets once again....
SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won said on the 10th that "the semiconductor industry now clearly does not move on the same cycle as before," adding that "right now the gap between demand and supply is enormously large, and in terms of growth pace, demand is outstripping supply." Chey held a briefing with Korean correspondents at the Nasdaq MarketSite in Manhattan, New York, where he made the remarks. "The artificial intelligence (AI) we see now is only at the level of a 4-to-5-year-old child, so to reach artificial general intelligence (AGI, AI that learns, reasons, and solves problems on its own like humans), it must learn an enormous amount of information, and the storage medium for that can only be memory chips," he stressed. The comment signals that even as memory chip performance improves, demand growth is overwhelming supply, prompting an aggressive expansion of production facilities. Regarding the U.S. push for investment in America, Chey stressed that "to build a memory chip fab (production plant), various requirements must be met, including electricity, clean water, and large sites of land." He said, "If there is a location that meets those conditions, I will not care whether it is in the United States or anywhere else in the world." He kept his distance, however, adding that "we can review it, but our position is not that we will definitely do it." Meeting reporters to mark the successful listing of SK hynix's (000660.KS) American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) on the Nasdaq market, Chey also hinted at a plan to conduct a par-value split of the common shares listed on Korea's KOSPI market. "If the chief financial officer (CFO) requests it, of course we will do it," he said. On the pursuit by China's semiconductor industry, Chey stressed, "By the time you feel threatened, it is already too late," adding, "We need to move a bit faster and also expand our portfolio of AI technologies."...
Daily puzzles and brain teasers
Sendbird unveiled Agent Steward, an AI-agent-based customer service solution that handles complex tasks like refunds, targeting Korea and the U.S. markets with delivery and home service clients.
Kim Ki-hyuk
Jang Hyung-im
Kim Ki-hyuk
Kim Tae-young
The 2026 Lotte Aquaslon, combining open-water swimming at Seokchon Lake and a 123-floor sky run up Lotte World Tower, drew about 1,000 participants on the 12th in Seoul.
Kim Jung-hoon
Park Min-young, Senior Reporter
Kim Jung-hoon
Park Min-young, Senior Reporter
Lim Hye-rin
Daily puzzles and brain teasers
Kim Hyun-soo (Commentary)
Park Yoon-sun (Commentary)
Seogyeong IN (Commentary)
SedaeilyIN (Commentary)
Seoul Economic Daily
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