▲ AI PRISM* Customized Economic Briefing
*Editor's Note: 'AI PRISM' (Personalized Report & Insight Summarizing Media) is an 'AI-based customized news recommendation and summary service' developed with support from the Korea Press Foundation. It selects and provides six customized news items for each reader type.
[Key Issue Briefing]
■ Total AI Memory: Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) has begun mass production of the 'PM1763,' a new eSSD (enterprise solid-state drive) for Nvidia's next-generation AI computing platform Vera Rubin. This completes its supply system in the NAND segment, following the HBM4 (sixth-generation high bandwidth memory) it shipped in February this year as the world's first. With both DRAM and NAND established as high-value products in the AI data center market, expectations are growing that quarterly operating profit in the 100 trillion won range will continue over the medium to long term.
■ AI Safety Rating Reality: In the '2026 First Half AI Safety Index' released by the Future of Life Institute (FLI), a U.S. nonprofit think tank, not a single one of the nine major global AI companies—including Anthropic, OpenAI, and Google DeepMind—received an A or B grade, and even first-place Anthropic managed only a C+. xAI, DeepSeek, and Mistral received F grades. Evaluation panelists pointed out that major companies have recently been weakening or hollowing out the safety standards they initially set for themselves.
■ Semiconductor Supercycle: As Samsung Electronics posted an earnings surprise with second-quarter operating profit of 89.4 trillion won this year, Meritz Securities analyst Kim Sun-woo assessed that this supercycle will continue for at least two to three more years as long as big tech companies do not stop investing in AI infrastructure to secure AGI (artificial general intelligence) leadership. Analysts say a structurally different cycle from the past is unfolding as the center of gravity in memory demand shifts from B2C (business-to-consumer) to B2B (business-to-business).
[News of Interest to Corporate CEOs]
1. Samsung Mass-Produces 'AI NAND' for Vera Rubin After HBM4… 'Wings' for 100 Trillion Won Profit
- Key Summary: Samsung Electronics has begun mass production of the 'PM1763,' a new eSSD (enterprise solid-state drive) for Nvidia's next-generation AI platform Vera Rubin, establishing a total AI memory system that supplies both HBM (high bandwidth memory) and eSSDs. The PM1763 adopts PCIe (PCI Express) 6.0, a next-generation high-speed data transfer standard, doubling transfer bandwidth compared with the previous generation, while sequential read speed on a 16TB (terabyte) basis has also doubled from its predecessor. HBM4 prices are expected to rise 70-100% from last year on the back of a growing share of latest-product sales this year, and the average price of NAND is found to have risen more than 70% quarter-on-quarter in the second quarter alone due to expanding demand for AI server eSSDs. The industry forecasts the eSSD market will expand to approximately $154 billion (about 233 trillion won) next year, growing more than sixfold in a single year.
2. So Confident About AI Safety… Not a Single A or B Grade
- Key Summary: In the '2026 First Half AI Safety Index' released on the 7th by the Future of Life Institute (FLI), a U.S. nonprofit think tank in the AI safety field, not one of the nine major global AI companies received an A or B grade: Anthropic (C+), OpenAI (C), Google DeepMind (C), Meta (D+), Z.ai and Alibaba Cloud (D-), and xAI, DeepSeek, and Mistral (F). Evaluation panelists pointed out that safety standards the major companies set for themselves—such as Anthropic's RSP (Responsible Scaling Policy) and OpenAI's 'Preparedness Framework'—have recently been weakened or narrowed in scope. Meanwhile, an independent international AI science panel warned in a preliminary report released this month that "there is not yet a reliable method to control highly autonomous AI," pointing to the 'information asymmetry' problem in which the companies being evaluated design the safety verification methodologies themselves. Experts stress that enforceable safety standards and independent third-party verification systems must be established to keep pace with the speed of AI development.
3. "Semiconductor Supercycle Until Big Tech Gives Up Investment… Will Last 2-3 More Years"
- Key Summary: As Samsung Electronics posted an earnings surprise with second-quarter operating profit of 89.4 trillion won this year, exceeding market expectations, Meritz Securities analyst Kim Sun-woo forecast that this supercycle will continue for at least two to three more years as long as big tech companies keep investing in AI infrastructure to secure AGI (artificial general intelligence) leadership. Citing the structural shift of memory demand from B2C to B2B, he said, "The cycle will end the moment a company emerges that stops investing, declaring it is giving up first place in the competition." He also projected that if SK hynix (000660.KS) undergoes a global revaluation through an ADR (American depositary receipt) listing, Samsung Electronics could also benefit from a valuation re-rating. In addition, he assessed that AIDCs (AI data centers) themselves will emerge as national security assets going forward, and that attracting U.S. big tech AI factories to Korea could become a strategic asset.
[Reference News for Corporate CEOs]
- Key Summary: As the government decided to include LNG (liquefied natural gas) combined-cycle power generation in the Honam semiconductor cluster, it plans to build an LNG combined-cycle power plant with 1-2GW (gigawatts) of capacity near the southwestern semiconductor cluster using an 'on-site' approach that supplies electricity exclusively from near large-scale power demand sites. With new nuclear plants typically taking 13 years and 11 months to build, solar power unable to provide stable 24-hour supply, and regional transmission line expansion delayed by resident opposition, LNG combined-cycle generation—capable of starting commercial operation within three to five years once permits are resolved—has emerged as a realistic alternative. Another cited advantage is that, if used in a cogeneration format, surplus thermal energy can be supplied to industrial facilities in the form of steam, procuring both the electricity and thermal energy needed for the semiconductor cluster simultaneously. However, according to Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO), the power purchase price for LNG generation last year was 158.4 won per kWh (kilowatt-hour), the highest among major power sources, leaving cost burden as a remaining challenge.
5. 3,000 Companies in Scope 3 Range in 6 Years… Reversed Roadmap Puts Firms on the Spot
- Key Summary: Under the 'final plan for institutionalizing ESG disclosure' announced by the government and ruling party through a policy consultation, 157 companies subject to mandatory ESG disclosure by 2029 (consolidated total assets of 5 trillion won or more) and 3,014 major subsidiaries fall within the disclosure scope, bringing a total of 3,171 companies into range. Companies with consolidated assets of 10 trillion won or more will be subject from fiscal year 2027, and to disclose Scope 3 (carbon emissions across the entire supply chain), they must effectively complete related infrastructure by 2030. Scope 3 covers greenhouse gas emissions across the entire supply chain, including supplier production, logistics and transportation, and product use and disposal. In a Federation of Korean Industries survey in February this year, 66.7% of manufacturing companies responded that the Scope 3 application date should be postponed to 2033 or later. Since it will be a statutory disclosure, companies may face even criminal punishment for errors in disclosed data, deepening concerns in the business community.
- Key Summary: KB Kookmin Bank has seen loans surge since June, centered on mortgage loans, making it difficult to meet its annual household loan management target…
