Korean startup executives will take the stage at a major global semiconductor industry conference, showcasing metrology technologies critical to chip yield improvement before leading international companies.
Three Korean startups are scheduled to present at SPIE AL 2026, a semiconductor academic conference that opened February 22 (local time) in San Jose, California, according to industry sources on February 23.
SPIE AL, hosted annually by the International Society for Optics and Photonics (SPIE), is a forum where the semiconductor industry and academia share the latest research findings. It is regarded as one of the world's most prestigious semiconductor academic events for sharing cutting-edge metrology technology trends. This year's keynote speakers include Kwon Eon-oh, Vice President of SK hynix, and Hui-Feng Kou, Senior Vice President of GlobalFoundries.
SemiAI, a domestic startup, will have CEO Ji Tae-kwon and Managing Director Seo Jeong-hoon take the stage as speakers at SPIE AL just one year after the company's founding. SemiAI plans to introduce "SMILE," an AI technology for virtual metrology of semiconductor defects. The technology uses digital twin-based virtual fabs and AI to predict semiconductor process variations in advance and improve yields. Yield refers to the ratio of normally functioning chips actually produced to the total number of chips designed on a single wafer, serving as a key productivity metric.
Je Won-ho, a former professor in Seoul National University's Department of Physics and Astronomy, also boarded a flight to the United States with his startup business card in hand. Je is attending SPIE AL for the first time since founding Multiscale Instruments, an atomic-scale metrology equipment developer, in 2023. At this event, Je will showcase Multiscale Instruments' atomic microscope products "Chronos" and "Zeus," explaining physical semiconductor metrology using atomic microscopes and solutions for yield improvement.
Gauss Labs, founded in 2020, will present two papers jointly with its parent company SK hynix. The two companies plan to disclose real-world process application cases of "Panoptes VM," an AI-based virtual metrology solution. Panoptes VM is an AI used for semiconductor process metrology aimed at yield improvement. The papers to be presented contain data collected from SK hynix's use of Panoptes VM in production facilities since 2022 and research findings based on that data.
Startups attending this year's SPIE AL expressed confidence in making their mark before formidable global competitors. "Metrology inspection determines semiconductor yield, and yield ultimately decides the profitability of semiconductor companies," Je said. "We will showcase technologies that overcome existing limitations."